Congress leader Pawan Khera, excited by the excellent performance of the India Alliance in the recent by-elections, took a dig at Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Addressing a press conference, he remarked, “The Prime Minister will probably be attending a wedding ceremony (Anant Ambani) today, but there will be no happiness on his face. But what can be done now?”

Khera highlighted the significance of these by-elections, noting that they were held on 13 seats across seven states. “For the second time in one and a half months, the people of the country have given a strong message to the BJP. The message was very clear in the Lok Sabha elections. In Uttarakhand, we won both our seats, Badrinath and Mangalore. In Himachal Pradesh, Congress won 2 out of 3 seats. If we assess the total 13 seats, then BJP got only 2 seats,” he stated.

By-Elections Held in 7 States

Voting for the assembly by-elections took place on Wednesday for 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. Congress, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), Trinamool Congress (TMC), and DMK, which are part of the India Alliance, had fielded their candidates in these by-elections.

TMC Wins All 4 Seats in West Bengal

In the by-elections held on four seats in West Bengal, TMC maintained its dominance and won all four seats. Krishna Kalyani won from Raiganj, while Mukut Mani Adhikari won from Ranaghat South. TMC candidate Madhuparna Thakur won from Bagda seat, and Supti Pandey also emerged victorious in Maniktola.

Independent Candidate Wins in Rupauli, Bihar

Independent candidate Shankar Singh won the by-election for the Rupauli assembly seat in Bihar, defeating Kaladhar Prasad Mandal of the ruling Janata Dal United (JDU) by a margin of 8,246 votes. Shankar Singh secured a total of 68,070 votes.

Congress Wins Two Seats in Himachal Pradesh

By-elections were held on three seats in Himachal Pradesh, where Congress registered a landslide victory on two seats. The BJP managed to win only the Hamirpur seat.

AAP Continues to Dominate in Punjab

In Punjab, ruling AAP’s Mohinder Bhagat won the Jalandhar West seat by defeating his nearest rival, BJP candidate Sheetal Angural, by a margin of 37,325 votes. The seat fell vacant after Angural resigned as an AAP MLA in March and joined the BJP.

DMK Candidate Wins in Tamil Nadu

In Tamil Nadu, Anniyur Siva of the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) defeated Anbumani C of the Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK) by 67,757 votes in the Vikravandi assembly seat.

Congress’ Clean Sweep in Uttarakhand

In Uttarakhand, Congress candidate Lakhpat Singh Butola defeated his nearest rival, former minister and MLA Rajendra Singh Bhandari of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), by 5,224 votes in the Badrinath assembly by-election. Butola received 28,161 votes, while Bhandari got 22,937 votes. In the Mangalore seat by-election, Congress candidate Qazi Nizamuddin defeated BJP's Kartar Singh Bhadana by a margin of 422 votes.

BJP’s Dominance Continues in Madhya Pradesh

BJP’s Kamlesh Pratap Shahi defeated Congress’s Dheeran Shah Invati in the Amarwara seat. Kamlesh Pratap secured the victory by a margin of 3,027 votes.

The resounding success of the India Alliance in the by-elections sends a strong message to the BJP and marks a significant political shift in the Indian political landscape.