One-sixth of the total 60 seats in the Arunachal Pradesh Assembly has been filled with candidates elected unopposed, with BJP nominees in all the 10 seats — including sitting Chief Minister Pema Khandu and Deputy CM Chowna Mein. For candidates, Saturday was the final day to withdraw their nominations and by evening, Arunachal Pradesh Chief Electoral Officer Pawar Kumar Sain declared that 10 candidates had been elected unopposed. Sain directed the respective Returning Officer to issue certificates of election to them. Khandu won unopposed from his family’s stronghold Mukto, which he had also won unopposed in the 2011 by-election after the death of his father and former CM Dorjee Khandu. He had won unopposed again in 2014. On Saturday evening, he exuded confidence that the BJP would sweep the remaining constituencies. Mein won unopposed from Chowkham constituency after his challenger from the Congress, Bayamso Kri, withdrew his nomination Saturday. The other candidates elected unopposed include Dasanglu Pul from the Hayuliang, Dongru Siongju (Bomdila), Ratu Techi (Sagalee), Techi Kaso (Itanagar), Hage Appa (Ziro-Hapoli), Jikke Tako (Tali), Nyato Dukam (Taliha) and Mutchu Mithi (Roing). In 2014, when the state was still a Congress stronghold, it saw a record number of unopposed candidates – 11, all from the Congress (including Pema Khandu who was then a part of the Congress). In 2019, with the balance tilted towards the BJP, 3 candidates from the party were elected unopposed.
