Shillong, September 8: The counting of votes for seven assembly seats in six states, which underwent bypolls on September 5, is set to take place at designated centers within their respective states on Friday.
As per India Today, these bypoll results are significant as they serve as a litmus test for the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) bloc against the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led NDA. This test is crucial ahead of five state assembly elections later this year and the pivotal Lok Sabha polls in 2024.
The seven seats in question are Bageshwar in Uttarakhand, Ghosi in Uttar Pradesh, Puthuppally in Kerala, Dhupguri in West Bengal, Dumri in Jharkhand, and Boxanagar and Dhanpur in Tripura.
BJP held Bageshwar, Dhupguri, and Dhanpur seats, while the Samajwadi Party held the Ghosi seat, Boxanagar was with the Communist Party of India (Marxist), Dumri with Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM), and Puthuppally was under Congress’s purview.
In the Ghosi Assembly constituency of Uttar Pradesh, the voter turnout for the by-election was 49.42 percent on Tuesday.
Jharkhand’s Dumri witnessed a turnout of 64.84 percent, while Bageshwar in Uttarakhand recorded a voting percentage of 55.35.
On the other hand, Boxanagar and Dhanpur in Tripura saw high voter turnouts, with 86.34 percent and 81.88 percent, respectively, while Dhupguri in West Bengal registered a turnout of 74.35 percent.
The Ghosi bypoll was necessitated when Dara Singh Chauhan, who had previously won the seat in the 2022 Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls, returned to the BJP after resigning from the Samajwadi Party. Chauhan was chosen as the BJP’s candidate for the bypoll, while the Samajwadi Party fielded Sudhakar Singh against him.
In Tripura’s Dhanpur, the by-election was triggered when the BJP’s Pratima Bhoumik resigned to retain her Lok Sabha seat, leaving the assembly seat vacant. Bhoumik’s brother, Bindu Debnath, contested for the BJP against Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) candidate Kaushik Chanda.
In Tripura’s Boxanagar, the BJP and CPI (M) contested after the seat fell vacant due to the death of CPI (MK) MLA Samsul Haque.
In Uttarakhand’s Bageshwar seat, the battle unfolded among the Samajwadi Party, Congress, and the BJP, prompted by the death of BJP MLA Chandan Ram Dass.
The bypoll in Kerala’s Puthupally followed the passing of Congress veteran Oomen Chandy. Congress fielded Oommen Chandy’s son, Chandy Oomen, while the ruling party CPI (M) nominated Jaick C. Thomas.
In Jharkhand’s Dumri, the by-election arose following the demise of JMM MLA Jagarnath Mahto. JMM fielded Mahto’s wife, Bebi Devi, who represented the INDIA bloc against NDA’s Yashoda Devu and All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) candidate Abdul Rizvi.
Lastly, in West Bengal’s Dhupguri, the bye-election was necessary after the passing of the BJP’s Bishnu Pada Ray. The BJP’s Tapas Ray contested against Nirma Chandra Roy and CPI (M) candidate Ishwar Chandra Roy.