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BJP-SP battle set to intensify as UP gears up for legislative council polls
India Today
The BJP and the SP are gearing up to lock horns again in UP as the state gears up for the legislative council election.
With the Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections now over, political parties are focusing on the legislative council elections.
Nominations for the legislative council elections to be held across 36 seats will start on March 15. The voting will be held on April 9 and the counting of votes will take place on April 12.
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At present, the Samajwadi Party has a majority in the legislative council. The SP has 48 seats in the council, while the BJP has 36. However, eight MLCs from the SP have now moved to the BJP. At the same time, an MLC of BSP has also joined the BJP. After the results of the UP Assembly polls, the BJP is now eyeing a win against the Samajwadi party again in the MLC elections.
The elections will be held in two phases. Nominations for 30 seats in the first phase will be held from March 15 to 19. Scrutiny of the nomination papers for this phase will be held on March 21 and withdrawal of nominations will be allowed till March 23. Voting will take place on April 9.
In the second phase, elections will be held for six seats, whose nominations can be submitted till March 22. Investigations can be done till March 23 and names can be withdrawn by March 25. Voting will be held on April 9 and counting of votes will take place on April 12.
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