EC Announces Biennial Polls for J&K’s Vacant Upper House Seats, Counting Same Day
Rajya Sabha Elections in J&K After Four Years, Polls for Four Seats on October 24
New Delhi, Sept 24: The Election Commission of India on Wednesday announced that biennial elections to fill four vacant Rajya Sabha seats from the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir will be conducted on October 24, 2025. These seats have remained unoccupied since 2021 owing to the absence of a functional Legislative Assembly, which serves as the Electoral College for Upper House polls.
The vacancies arose in the wake of the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019, which bifurcated the erstwhile state into two Union Territories, Jammu and Kashmir, with a legislature, and Ladakh, without one. The Act clarified that the four sitting Rajya Sabha members elected from the undivided state would be deemed to represent the newly constituted Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir until their term expired.
However, with the terms of those members having ended, and the absence of an elected Assembly until recently, the seats remained vacant for more than four years. The restoration of a duly elected Legislative Assembly in Jammu and Kashmir has now created the requisite electorate to carry out the biennial polls.
According to the notification, polling for the four Rajya Sabha seats will be held on October 24, with voting restricted to members of the Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly. The Election Commission has scheduled counting for the same evening, immediately after polling concludes, ensuring a swift declaration of results.
Political observers believe that the upcoming Rajya Sabha elections will carry wider political significance, given the renewed functioning of representative institutions in Jammu and Kashmir after a prolonged hiatus. The outcome will not only influence the balance of power in the Upper House but also serve as a barometer of political alignments and party strengths within the newly elected Assembly.
