Delhi Election 2025: Why is voting held mid-week and not on weekend? CEC Rajiv Kumar explains
Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar said at a press conference, “We have deliberately kept polling on a Wednesday... like we did in Maharashtra.”
Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar said on Tuesday that the decision to hold voting in the Delhi Assembly Election 2025 on a Wednesday was "deliberate". He said at a press conference, “We have deliberately kept polling on a Wednesday... like we did in Maharashtra.”
The CEC said, “Date of polling is February 5 and counting is on 8. Again, we have deliberately kept voting on a Wednesday. We think all Delhi voters should cast their votes. Like Maharashtra, we have scheduled voting on a Wednesday. Entire election process after counting will be complete by February 10."
While announcing the poll schedule for Maharashtra last October, Rajiv Kumar had said, “You will notice that the date of the poll is Wednesday. This is deliberate and we have tried that it is mid-week so that the issue of urban apathy is handled.”
Kumar had then said the commission has observed that urban voters tend to combine weekends with the polling day holiday for getaways, etc., and skip polling.
"We are really really concerned about urban apathy. We want to appeal to all voters in urban areas to come and vote. It is not a healthy trend which is reflected," he had said.
The elections for the 70-member Delhi Assembly will be held in a single-phase on February 5. The date of notification will be January 10. Last date of making nomination will be January 17, scrutiny on January 18 and withdrawal of nomination on January 20.
The date of counting will be held on February 8. "The entire election process after counting will be complete by February 10," said Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar.
Of the 70 seats in Delhi, 58 are general and 12 reserved. According to the electoral roll, Delhi has 1.55 crore voters – 83.49 lakh men, 71.74 lakh women and 1,261 transgender persons. There are 25.89 lakh young voters, 2.08 lakh first-time voters, and 830 above the age of 100, Kumar said. More than 13,000 polling stations will be set up in Delhi, he said.
Kumar dismissed allegations that names of eligible voters were removed from voters' list. He asserted that no deletion can occur without thorough documentation, field verification, and giving the concerned individual an opportunity to be heard. He emphasised that the process for additions and deletions is transparent, rigorous, and immune to arbitrary changes.
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Business NewsElectionsAssembly ElectionsDelhi Election 2025: Why is voting held mid-week and not on weekend? CEC Rajiv Kumar explains
First Published:8 Jan 2025, 06:32 AM IST
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