Election commission announces date for by-election in six states

The Election Commission of India (ECI) has announced the date for the by-elections to the Andheri East Assembly constituency in Mumbai, which fell vacant due to the death of MLA Ramesh Latke. The first election after the split in Mumbai, the stronghold of the Shiv Sena.

The by-election programme voting for the election will be held in November 3 and the result of this election will be announced on November 6.

The EC released the schedule for bypolls to seven Assembly constituencies in Maharashtra, Bihar, Haryana, Telangana, Uttar Pradesh and Odisha. The elections will be held on November 3 and the last date for filing nominations is October 14, the EC said.

The Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena has fielded Latke’s wife Rutuja in the election, the BJP is fielding former Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) corporator Murji Patel.

The Andheri bypoll will take place before the BMC elections and will be a litmus test for the Shiv Sena, which has faced a vertical split after a rebellion spearheaded by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and other MLAs.