In the by-elections held on 13 assembly seats across seven states, the ‘India’ alliance secured a significant victory, winning 10 seats. The BJP had to settle for only two seats, while an independent candidate emerged victorious in Bihar’s Rupauli seat. The by-elections, which took place on Wednesday, covered one seat in Punjab, three in Himachal Pradesh, two in Uttarakhand, four in West Bengal, and one seat each in Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, and Tamil Nadu. The Congress, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), Trinamool Congress (TMC), and DMK, all part of the ‘India’ alliance, had fielded their candidates in these elections.

TMC Dominates in West Bengal

Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s party, TMC, maintained its dominance in the by-elections held for four seats in West Bengal. TMC candidates won all four seats. Krishna Kalyani won from Raiganj, Mukut Mani Adhikari from Ranaghat South, Madhuparna Thakur from Bagda, and Supti Pandey from Maniktola. In Raiganj, Kalyani defeated BJP’s Manas Kumar Ghosh by a margin of 50,077 votes. In Bagdah, Madhuparna Thakur, daughter of TMC Rajya Sabha member Mamatabala Thakur, defeated BJP’s Binay Kumar Biswas by 33,455 votes. Mukut Mani Adhikari won Ranaghat South by 39,048 votes against BJP’s Manoj Kumar Biswas.

Independent Candidate Wins in Bihar

In Bihar, independent candidate Shankar Singh won the by-election for the Rupauli assembly seat in Purnia district. He defeated Kaladhar Prasad Mandal of the ruling Janata Dal United (JDU) by a margin of 8,246 votes, securing a total of 68,070 votes.

Congress Shines in Himachal Pradesh

By-elections were held on three seats in Himachal Pradesh, where Congress, led by Chief Minister Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu, performed brilliantly, winning two seats. The BJP managed to win only the Hamirpur seat, where Ashish Sharma emerged victorious. Congress’s Hardeep Singh Bawa won from Nalagarh and Kamlesh Thakur from Dehra. In Dehra, Kamlesh Thakur, wife of Chief Minister Sukhu, defeated BJP’s Hoshiar Singh by 9,399 votes. In Nalagarh, Hardeep Singh Bawa defeated BJP’s KL Thakur by 25,618 votes. BJP’s Ashish Sharma won the Hamirpur seat by 1,571 votes against Congress’s Pushpinder Verma.

AAP’s Victory in Punjab

In Punjab, Mohinder Bhagat of the ruling AAP won the Jalandhar West seat by a margin of 37,325 votes over BJP candidate Sheetal Angural. The seat had fallen vacant after Angural resigned as an AAP MLA in March and joined the BJP. Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann stated that this victory reflects the satisfaction of the people with his government’s performance.

DMK Secures Win in Tamil Nadu

In Tamil Nadu, DMK’s Anniyur Siva defeated PMK’s Anbumani C by 67,757 votes in the Vikravandi assembly seat, consolidating DMK’s strength in the state.

Congress Sweeps Uttarakhand

In Uttarakhand, Congress candidate Lakhpat Singh Butola won the Badrinath assembly by-election by 5,224 votes against BJP’s Rajendra Singh Bhandari. Butola received 28,161 votes, while Bhandari got 22,937 votes. Congress’s Qazi Nizamuddin also won the Mangalore seat by a margin of 422 votes against BJP’s Kartar Singh Bhadana.

BJP Maintains Dominance in Madhya Pradesh

In Madhya Pradesh, BJP’s Kamlesh Pratap Shahi defeated Congress’s Dheeran Shah Invati in the Amarwara seat by 3,027 votes, continuing the BJP’s stronghold in the state.

This resounding success of the ‘India’ alliance in the by-elections marks a significant political shift and sets the stage for future electoral battles.