Uttarakhand polls: Congress to declare 1st list of candidates within a week

Congress is likely to release its first list of candidates for the Uttarakhand assembly polls within a week as the party's screening committee is scheduled to meet on Tuesday to finalize the names, said a party source.

According to the source, consensus on more than 45 candidates has been reached during the last screening committee meeting. The announcement will be made once the party's central election committee (CEC) gives its nod to the list.

"Party has started planning a virtual campaign for Uttarakhand. Priyanka Gandhi Vadra is likely to address virtual campaigning for Uttarakhand by next week," said the source.

Meanwhile, the Election Commission of India on Saturday directed that no physical political rallies and roadshows will be allowed till January 15 for the Assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Goa, Manipur, and Uttarakhand amid a surge in COVID-19 cases.

Uttarakhand will go for a single-phase assembly poll on February 14. The counting of votes will be held on March 10.

In the 2017 assembly elections, BJP won 57 out of 70 seats in the state. After the elections, Trivendra Singh Rawat was sworn in as the Chief Minister. The BJP has changed its chief minister twice over the last one year in the state.