A circular from the Office of the Chief Electoral Officer in Delhi, dated January 19, 2024, marked April 16, 2024, as a “poll date” (both highlighted in bold) within the Election Planner issued by the Election Commission of India, stirred attention today.

This circular, directed to all 11 district election officers (DEOs) in Delhi, carries the title, “Compliance/Adhering to the timelines given in the Election Planner of Election Commission of India - Regarding.”

It outlines that “for the upcoming General Election to the Lok Sabha 2024, the Commission has tentatively designated the Poll Day as 16.04.2024 for the purpose of reference and to calculate Start and End dates in the Election Planner.”

The circular further indicates that notifications are sent from the Election Planner Portal to CEO Delhi through SMS & email on the Start and End Date of each activity. The status of each activity needs to be updated as Pending/ In Progress/ Scheduled/ Completed based on reports from the DEOs/ROs and relevant Branches at CEO (HQ).

In this context, the Assistant Chief Electoral Officer expects compliance with the given timelines for initiating and completing each election activity, urging the submission of reports to the COE Branch, the office of CEO, Delhi, at least one day before the Start and End dates of the activity(s).

The CEO Delhi clarified later in a statement that this was merely for officials to “plan activities” and the date was “tentative.” “Some media queries are coming referring to a circular by @CeodelhiOffice to clarify whether 16.04.2024 is the tentative poll day for #LSElections2024. It is clarified that this date was mentioned only for ‘reference’ for officials to plan activities as per Election Planner of ECI.”

A senior official, formerly with the Election Commission of India, highlighted, “The fact is that elections have to be completed before June. Mid-April to May-end are the normal/essential dates in any case.”

Interest in poll dates is expected, as their announcement prevents governments from initiating various plans and schemes. The declaration of dates triggers the model code of conduct, imposing restrictions to ensure a level playing field between the ruling government and opposition parties.

Political parties have already begun seeking information about the possibility of elections in April, with rumors circulating about the potential simultaneous holding of Andhra Pradesh assembly elections with the general elections in April 2024.