Cuttack: Odisha State Bar Council elections are being held on Saturday. The voting, which began at 10 am, will continue till 5 pm.
There are 182 bar associations that are affiliated with the Odisha State Bar Council. For the smooth conduct of the elections, 167 polling stations have been set up across the state. In Cuttack, 25 booths have been set up.
As many as 96 candidates are in the fray for 25 presidential posts. As many as 34,908 lawyers are eligible to cast their votes to elect the members.
Retired Justice Pramath Patnaik has been appointed returning officer for the ensuing election while advocates Basudev Pujari and Prafulla Kumar Rath will be the assistant returning officers, sources said.
In view of the elections, Saturday has been declared a holiday for the High Court and subordinate courts.
While the counting will start on April 21, the staff of the Odisha Assembly will count the votes and it is likely to continue for over two months.
However, no elections are being held in Sambalpur due to the imposition of curfew in the aftermath of the violence.
