The Election Commission on Tuesday announced by-polls in seven Assembly constituencies in five states on September 5. The EC's announcement comes days after the Supreme Court stayed Congress MP Rahul Gandhi's conviction in a defamation case, leading to the restoration of his membership of the Lok Sabha. The EC, according to sources, had decided to wait and see if the Congress leader got relief from the apex court before announcing by-poll for his Wayanad seat. The seats include Dumri in Jharkhand and Puthuppally in Kerala, which was vacated due to the death of Oommen Chandy recently. Two seats in Tripura, including Dhanpur that was vacated due to resignation of Pratima Bhoumik, will also have by-polls. The seats include Dhupguri in West Bengal and Ghosi and Bageshwar in Uttar Pradesh. As per the EC schedule, the nominations for the by-polls would be filed from August 10 to August 17. Counting of votes would be held on September 8.
