Bengaluru civic polls to be held on August 22

Elections to the Bengaluru civic corporation would be held on August 22 and counting of votes taken up on August 25, the Karnataka State Election Commission (SEC) notified on Monday.

"Elections for 198 wards of the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) will be conducted on August 22 from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m.; re-poll, if any, on August 24; and counting of votes on August 25," Election Commissioner P.N. Srinivasachary told reporters here.

The model code of conduct came into force till the completion of the poll process on August 26.

The last date for the filing of nominations is August 10, scrutiny will take place on August 11 whereas the last date for withdrawal of candidature is August 13.

The SEC had to re-schedule the civic polls from July 28 after the Supreme Court on July 4 granted it eight weeks more on the state government's request to complete the delimitation of wards as per the 2011 census.

The century-old BBMP was expanded in 2007 by including seven city municipal councils and one town municipal council and 111 surrounding villages to increase the civic wards to 198 from the earlier 100.

The SEC notification made the ruling Congress and main opposition parties - BJP and Janata Dal-Secular - hold day-long meetings to select candidates and draw up their manifestoes and campaign strategies.

The state government superseded the BJP-led civic body's term on April 18, four days before its five-year tenure ended and passed an amendment bill in the state legislative assembly on April 20 to bifurcate or trifurcate the BBMP.

Though the Karnataka Municipal Corporations (Amendments) Bill 2015 was passed by both houses of the state legislature by July 28, governor Vajubhai R. Vala, however, sent it to the President on July 29 for assent after the opposition parties petitioned him against approving the bill.