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Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami and Deputy Chief Minister O. Panneerselvam, on Monday, conducted interviews of aspiring Lok Sabha candidates ahead of the upcoming Lok Sabha elections 2019.
LS polls will begin on April 11 and continue for over a month till May 19 across seven phases, followed by counting of votes on May 23, the Election Commission announced on Sunday, kick-starting a mega electoral battle where the BJP will pitch for a re-election of the Modi government amid the Opposition's efforts for a united fight to unseat it.
The polling will be held on April 11, April 18, April 23, April 29, May 6, May 12 and May 19 for 543 Lok Sabha seats across the country in which nearly 90 crore voters would be eligible to vote, Chief Election Commissioner Sunil Arora said.
Assembly elections will also be held in Andhra Pradesh, Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh and Odisha simultaneously with the Lok Sabha polls, the CEC said.
Twenty-two states and union territories (UTs), including Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Telangana, will have Lok Sabha election in a single phase while it will be spread across seven phases in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and West Bengal.
Karnataka, Manipur, Rajasthan and Tripura will have Lok Sabha election in two phases, while Assam and Chhattisgarh will have three-phase polling.
Four states -- Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and Odisha -- will have elections in four phases. Jammu and Kashmir will have five-phase voting.
The Chief Election Commissioner said the model code of conduct would come into immediate effect from Sunday. Among other restrictions, the model code bars the government from announcing any policy move that may impact voters' decision.
(With inputs from agencies)
