New Delhi: The Election Commission of India will announce the schedule for Assembly elections in Assam, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, West Bengal and the Union Territory of Puducherry on Sunday evening, formally setting the stage for one of the country’s most significant electoral exercises of the year.

The poll authority has convened a press conference at 4 pm in New Delhi, where the detailed election schedule — including the dates for notification, nomination filing, scrutiny, polling, and counting of votes — is expected to be announced.

The terms of the legislative Assemblies in these states and the Union Territory are scheduled to expire at different points in May and June, necessitating fresh elections before the completion of their respective tenures. With the announcement of the poll schedule, the Model Code of Conduct will immediately come into force in the concerned states and the Union Territory, regulating government announcements and political campaigning during the election period.

In preparation for the polls, the Election Commission of India has already completed the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. As part of this exercise, the final voters’ lists for Assam, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, West Bengal and Puducherry have been published, ensuring that eligible voters are included and discrepancies are corrected ahead of the elections.

Officials said the revision process involved extensive verification of voter details, inclusion of newly eligible voters who have turned 18, and deletion of duplicate or ineligible entries. The updated electoral rolls will form the basis for the upcoming Assembly elections.

The polls in these politically significant states are expected to witness intense multi-cornered contests, with major national and regional parties preparing to mobilise their campaigns once the Election Commission formally unveils the schedule later in the day.