ECI Announces Bypolls for Budgam and Nagrota Assembly Seats in J&K
Voting for vacant seats scheduled on November 11 as nominations open from October 20.
Jammu, Oct 13: The Election Commission of India (ECI) on Monday issued notifications for by-elections to the Budgam and Nagrota Assembly constituencies in Jammu and Kashmir, with polling scheduled for November 11, 2025.
The Budgam seat fell vacant after National Conference vice president Omar Abdullah resigned from one of the two seats he had won in the October 2024 elections, choosing to retain Ganderbal. The Nagrota seat became vacant following the death of BJP MLA Devender Singh Rana on October 31, 2024.
As per the ECI schedule, nominations can be filed from October 20, scrutiny will be held on October 22, and the last date for withdrawal of candidature is October 24. Polling will be conducted from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m., and the entire election process is to be completed by November 16.
In the 90-member J&K Assembly, the National Conference won 42 seats, BJP 29, Congress 6, PDP 3, CPI(M) 1, AAP 1, AIP 1, PC 1, and 6 Independents. The Independents later joined the NC, while Congress chose to support the NC government from outside.
The upcoming bypolls are expected to be closely watched, given their potential impact on the balance of power in the Union Territory’s assembly.
