NEW DELHI: The Election Commission announced the dates for assembly elections in Assam on Sunday.According to Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, voting for the 126-member Assam assembly will take place in one phase on April 9. Votes would be counted on May 4.

Officials have indicated that the upcoming elections are likely to be conducted in fewer phases than in 2021. During the previous polls, West Bengal voted in eight phases, Assam in three phases, while Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Puducherry went to the polls in a single phase.In Assam, the contest is expected to be closely watched. Himanta Biswa Sarma of the Bharatiya Janata Party is seeking a third term as chief minister. The opposition Indian National Congress is hoping to regain ground, with state Congress chief Gaurav Gogoi leading the campaign.The Congress has released two lists of candidates so far for the assembly polls, announcing a total of 65 nominees.The party’s second list named 23 candidates, including Abdul Khaleque, Rakibuddin Ahmed and Bipul Gogoi, while 15 constituencies have been left for alliance partners under a seat-sharing arrangement.And the party’s first list included 42 candidates, featuring key leaders such as state Congress chief Gaurav Gogoi from Jorhat, Leader of Opposition Debabrata Saikia from Nazira, and sitting MLAs Nandita Das from Hajo-Sualkuchi and Diganta Barman from Barkhetri.The All India United Democratic Front, led by Badruddin Ajmal, has also released its first list of nine candidates and is expected to contest around 25 of the 126 seats.Meanwhile, the ruling BJP has yet to announce its candidate list. In the 2021 elections, the National Democratic Alliance comprising the BJP, Asom Gana Parishad and United People’s Party Liberal won 75 seats, with the BJP emerging as the largest partner with 60 seats.