Odisha panchayat bypolls postponed due to coronavirus scare

Bhubaneswar: Panchayat bypolls in Odisha, which were scheduled to be held on March 24, has been postponed due to COVID-19 outbreak.

As per an official notification of the State Election Commission, bypolls to 2 Zilla Parishad Member seats, 6 sarpanches, 8 samiti members and 84 ward members have been postponed with immediate effect until further orders.

“The State Election Commission takes into consideration the emerging challenges posed by COVID-19 and is of the view that continuing with the election schedule may be detrimental and harmful to public health at large due to movement of large numbers of Polling Personnel as well as voters in the ensuing bypolls” the notification said.