New Delhi: By-polls to three Lok Sabha seats and 29 assembly constituencies spread across 13 states and Dadra and Nagar Haveli will be held on Saturday with many contests seen as prestige issue for parties hit by defections.
Adequate security and Covid safety measures have been put in place for the electoral exercise.In majority of the seats, the main fight will be between BJP and Congress candidates.The counting of votes will take place on November 2.Though a bypoll was also announced for the Shamator-Chessore assembly constituency in Nagaland, Nationalist Democratic Progressive Party candidate S Keoshu Yimchunger was declared elected uncontested on October 13.
The by-election to Dadra and Nagar Haveli Lok Sabha seat was necessitated following the death of Mohan Delkar, the independent MP from the constituency, in February this year.There are three candidates in the fray, including Delkar’s widow Kalaben Delkar, who is contesting as a Shiv Sena nominee. From the BJP, Mahesh Gavit is fighting the bypoll, while the Congress has fielded Mahesh Dhodi.
Voting is underway across 333 booths and tight security arrangements have been made with the deployment of 10 companies of paramilitary forces, officials of the Election Commission said.There are a total of 2.58 lakh voters in the constituency, including 1.22 lakh female voters, the officials said, adding that around 1,500 people were deployed for election duty.The Shiv Sena and the Congress are constituents in the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government in Maharashtra, but they are contesting against each other in Dadra and Nagar Haveli.
Late Lok Sabha MP Mohan Delkar.
Mizoram
The bypoll to the Tuirial assembly constituency in Mizoram’s Kolasib district is being held after the death of sitting MLA Andrew H Thangliana of Zoram People’s Movement (ZPM).The ruling MNF has fielded K Laldawngliana, while the ZPM candidate is Laltlangmawi. The Congress has fielded Chalrosanga Ralte and BJP K Laldinthara for the by-election.The contest will, however, be between MNF, Congress and the ZPM.
Chief Electoral Officer P Jawahar told PTI that at least one company of central paramilitary force has been deployed, besides the state forces.A total of 17,911 voters are eligible to exercise their franchise in the bypoll across 27 polling stations.
Meghalaya
Three assembly constituencies in Meghalaya, Mawryngkneng, Mawphlang and Rajabala, were necessitated following the demise of the sitting MLAs of the three seats.A total of 13 candidates are in the fray for the by-polls to the three seats. Five candidates each are contesting from Mawryngkneng and Rajabala constituencies, while three are in the fray in Mawphlang constituency.
Over 1 lakh voters are eligible to exercise their franchise in the bypolls.Mawryngkneng with 60 polling stations has 36,751 voters, while Mawphlang with 50 polling stations has 33,194 voters and Rajabala with 58 polling stations has 32,750 voters.
Polling parties leave for poll duty ahead of the bypoll to Mandi Lok Sabha seat, in Kullu, Thursday, Oct. 28, 2021.
Himachal Pradesh
Voting for bypolls to the Mandi Lok Sabha and Arki, Fatehpur, and Jubbal-Kotkhai assembly seats in Himachal Pradesh are taking place across 2,484 polling stations and 312 auxiliary polling stations.A total of 12,99,756 voters for Mandi Lok Sabha, 87,222 for Fatehpur, 92,609 for Solan and 70,965 voters for Jubbal-Kotkhai Vidhan Sabha seats may exercise their right to franchise.
The by-elections were necessitated following the death of sitting members.A total of 18 candidates are in the fray, including 12 for the three assembly seats and six for the Mandi Lok Sabha seat.A direct contest is expected between the ruling BJP and Congress on all seats except Jubbal-Kotkhai where rebel BJP candidate Chetan Singh Bragta is trying his luck as an independent candidate.
However, all eyes are on the Mandi parliamentary bypoll as the constituency is the home turf of Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur.The BJP has fielded Kargil war hero Brigadier Khushal Singh Thakur from Mandi against Congress candidate Pratibha Singh, the wife of late chief minister Virbhadra Singh.
Karnataka
Bypolls are being held at Sindgi and Hangal assembly constituencies in Karnataka where a total of 19 candidates are in the fray – six from Sindgi and 13 from Hangal. Two candidates from Sindgi are women.There are a total of 4,39,148 eligible voters, including 230 service voters from both the constituencies, who can cast their votes at 560 polling stations.The by-elections have been necessitated as the seats fell vacant following the death of Sindgi JD(S) legislator M.C. Managuli and BJP’s C.M. Udasi from Hangal.
While Ramesh Bhusanur, who came second behind Managuli in 2018 polls, is the BJP candidate from Sindgi, Shivaraj Sajjanar is its candidate from Hangal constituency.The Congress has named M.C. Managuli’s son Ashok Managuli, who has joined the party, as its candidate from Sindgi, while former MLC Srinivas Mane is its candidate from Hangal.
The JD(S), which was the first to announce its candidates, has fielded 33-year-old post graduate Naziya Shakeel Ahmed Angadi from Sindgi and 35-year-old B.E, M.Tech graduate Niyaz Shaikh from Hangal.This is the first electoral challenge for Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai after taking charge.
Haryana
Voting for the bypoll to the Ellenabad assembly constituency in Haryana was necessitated by INLD leader Abhay Singh Chautala’s resignation as MLA from the seat in January over the Centre’s farm laws.Over 1.85 lakh voters will decide the fate of 19 candidates in the fray for the bypoll.A total of 211 polling booths have been set up, and 121 of these have been categorised as vulnerable and most vulnerable, the officials said.
Gobind Kanda, brother of Haryana Lokhit Party chief and legislator Gopal Kanda, joined the BJP recently and has been fielded by the BJP-JJP combine.Pawan Beniwal, who had unsuccessfully contested the previous assembly poll against Abhay Chautala, recently switched over from the BJP to the Congress. He is in the fray as the candidate of the main opposition party.
Bihar
Polling is underway for Tarapur and Kusheshwar Asthan assembly seats in Bihar where by-elections have been necessitated by the deaths of sitting MLAs, both belonging to Chief Minister Nitish Kumar’s JD(U).Altogether 17 candidates are in the fray for the two seats, eight in Tarapur and nine in Kusheshwar Asthan.The JD(U)’s bid to retain these seats is being challenged by the RJD headed by Kumar’s arch rival Lalu Prasad.
The JD(U) has placed its bet on fresh faces in both seats. In Tarapur, which has fallen vacant upon Mewa Lal Chaudhary’s demise, the party has fielded Rajiv Kumar Singh while in the reserved Kusheshwar Asthan, debutant Awadh Bhushan Hazari seeks to retain for his party, the seat his father Shashi Bhushan Hazari had won three times in a row.
The RJD, which boasts of a formidable support base in the form of the Muslim-Yaadav (MY) combination, has made the battle harder for JD(U) with its deft play of the caste card in both seats.
In Tarapur, which has so far sent only Yadavs or Koeris to the assembly, the RJD has fielded Arun Sah, a Vaishya, seeking to win over a community that has traditionally been with the BJP and its allies.
The JD(U) has been sharing power with the BJP for more than a decade and a half. It started off as a senior partner in the coalition, but of late has ceded the upper hand to the saffron party which has emerged as a near hegemonic force in the Hindi heartland.Similarly, in Kusheshwar Asthan the RJD has fielded Ganesh Bharti, who belongs to the Musahar community which aspires to get its due among the Dalits.
Lalu Prasad Yadav addressing a public meeting ahead of bypolls in Bihar on October 27, 2021.
However, in both seats the Congress and the Chirag Paswan-headed faction of Lok Janshakti Party could to play a decisive role if the contest between JD(U) and RJD turns out to be a close one.The Congress, which has for long remained content as a subservient junior partner of the RJD in Bihar, decided to pull itself by its bootstraps after being humiliated by the domineering senior ally.
The RJD’s announcement of candidates for both seats, without taking into confidence the Congress which had contested Kusheshwar Asthan in assembly polls last year, proved to be the proverbial last straw.
The party has fielded Atirek Kumar, son of Ashok Ram who gave Shashi Bhushan Hazari a tough fight a year ago. In Tarapur, which the Congress had never intended to fight until the decision to call off the alliance, it has fielded Rajiv Kumar Mishra, a well-known social worker who is an upper caste Brahmin and had polled about 10,000 votes when he fought in the assembly polls as an Independent.
Another upper caste candidate in Tarapur is Kumar Chandan, a Rajput, who is contesting on the ticket of LJP (Ram Vilas) which Chirag heads. For Chirag, the by-polls in both seats would be a test of his strength after the split in the party founded by his father of which a major chunk has rallied with his rebellious uncle and cousin, Pashupati Kumar Paras and Prince Raj respectively.
While Tarapur falls within Chirag’s own Jamui Lok Sabha constituency, Kusheshwar Asthan is a part of Samastipur which Prince Raj represents.Chirag’s candidate in Kusheshwar Asthan Anju Devi is the only woman in the fray.
Rajasthan
Voting for bypolls to the assembly constituencies of Vallabhnagar (Udaipur) and Dhariawad (Pratapgarh) in Rajasthan to decide the fate of 16 candidates were necessitated by the death of Congress MLA from Vallabhnagar Gajendra Singh Shaktawat and BJP legislator from Dhariawad Gautam Lal Meena.A total of 638 polling booths have been set up in both the constituencies, and 119 of them are sensitive. Webcasting will be done in 64 sensitive booths and videography in 29.
In Vallabhnagar, the ruling Congress party has given its ticket to Gajendra Shaktawat’s wife, Preeti Shaktawat, while the BJP has fielded Himmat Singh Jhala.The Congress has fielded Nagraj Meena in Dhariawad against BJP candidate Khet Singh Meena.
Madhya Pradesh
As many as 48 candidates are in the fray in to one Lok Sabha and three assembly seats in Madhya Pradesh where straight fights are expected between the ruling BJP and opposition Congress.Altogether 26,50,004 voters are eligible to exercise franchise during the bypolls.Sixteen candidates each are in the fray for by-polls to Khandwa Lok Sabha seat and Raigaon (SC) Assembly constituency.
Ten candidates are in the fray in Prithvipur and six in Jobat (ST) assembly constituencies.The Khandwa parliamentary seat and Raigaon assembly seat in Satna district were held by the BJP while Jobat in Alirajpur and Prithvipur in Niwari districts were with the Congress.
In Khandwa, the BJP has fielded former district panchayat president Gyaneshwar Patil, denying the ticket to Harshvardhan Chauhan, the son of sitting MP Nand Kumar Singh Chauhan whose demise necessitated the bypoll. The Congress has fielded former MLA Rajnarayan Singh Purni.
Deceased BJP Lok Sabha member from Khandwa, Madhya Pradesh, Nand Kumar Singh Chauhan.
In Jobat, Sulochana Rawat is the BJP’s nominee against Congress candidate Mahesh Patel. The seat fell vacant due to the death of sitting Congress legislator Kalawati Bhuria.Rawat, a former MLA, joined the BJP recently after quitting Congress. She had won from Jobat on Congress’s ticket in 1998 and 2008.
In Raigaon (SC) seat, the BJP has fielded Pratima Bagri, the daughter-in-law of MLA Jugal Kishore Bagri whose death necessitated the bypoll. She will face Congress’ Kalpana Verma.Verma had been defeated by Jugal Kishore Bagri in the 2018.
In Prithvipur, the BJP has fielded former Samajwadi Party leader Shishupal Singh against Congress’s Nitendra Rathore, the son of former minister Brajendra Singh Rathore whose death necessitated the bypoll.
Bengal
By-polls to the four assembly constituencies of Dinhata in Cooch Behar, Shantipur in Nadia, Khardah in North 24 Parganas and Gosaba in South 24 Parganas districts will be taking place in West Bengal.In Dinhata, TMC’s heavyweight north Bengal leader Udayan Guha is fighting to reclaim the seat which BJP had snatched from him by a whisker in polls held last April.
The by-election at Dinhata were necessitated by the resignation of Nisith Pramanik, now Union Minister of State for Home Affairs, who favoured keeping his Lok Sabha membership over sitting in the opposition in West Bengal’s assembly.Guha, a two-time MLA from Dinhata, is up against BJP’s Ashok Mandal, who as a TMC candidate had defeated him, a Forward Bloc candidate then, in 2006.
The bypoll to Shantipur was necessitated by the resignation of BJP MP Jagannath Sarkar, who too resigned from the assembly seat in favour of retaining his Lok Sabha membership.State minister Sovandeb Chattopadhyay, who resigned from Bhabanipur to facilitate Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s election to the Assembly, is fighting from Khardah, where TMC’s Kajal Sinha died due to COVID-19, just days after polls to the seat were held Bypoll to the Gosaba seat in Sunderbans was also necessitated by the death of TMC’s Jayanta Naskar, who too was suffering from Covid.
Assam
Polling for bye-elections to five Assam assembly constituencies will see 7.96 lakh voters decide the electoral fate of 31 contestants.Voting will take place in 1,176 polling stations, including 285 in Gossaigaon, 213 in Bhabanipur, 322 in Tamulpur, 183 in Mariani and 173 in Thowra constituencies.
The prominent contestants include Rupjyoti Kurmi, Sushanta Borgohain, Phanidhar Talukdar (all BJP); Luhit Konwar, Jowel Tudu, Sailendra Nath Das, Bhaskar Dahal, Monuranjan Konwar (all INC); Krishna Gogoi (CPI); Jiron Basumatary, Jolen Daimary (both UPPL); Dhruba Kumar Brahma Narzary (BPF); Jubbar Ali and Khairul Anam Khandakar (both AIUDF).Bye-election in Gossaigaon and Tamulpur were necessitated due to death of the sitting MLAs, while the incumbents of Bhabanipur, Mariani and Thowra resigned from their seats to join the ruling BJP.
Andhra Pradesh
Bypolls will also be held in Andhra Pradesh’s Badvel seat, which fell vacant following the death of YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) legislator Gunthoti Venkatasubbaiah.The ruling YSRCP’s candidate is Venkatasubbaiah’s widow, Dr Dasari Sudha. The TDP candidate is Dr. Obulapuram Rajasekhar.
Maharashtra
As many as 12 candidates, including of main contenders Congress and the BJP, are left in the fray for the October 30 bypoll to the Deglur-Biloli assembly seat in Nanded district of Maharashtra.As many as nine candidates opted out of the race on the last day of withdrawal of nominations on Wednesday.
The Congress has fielded Jitesh Raosaheb Antapurkar, the son of the deceased MLA, while the BJP has nominated Subhash Sabne, a former Shiv Sena legislator who recently joined the main opposition party in the state.
Telangana
The by-election to Huzurabad assembly constituency in Telangana sees the ruling TRS, opposition BJP and Congress locked in a triangular contest.As many as 2,37,036 voters are eligible to exercise their franchise, district collector RV Karnan said on Friday. They include 1,17,933 male and 1,19,102 female voters.The polls were necessitated by the resignation of Eatala Rajender in June following his removal from the state Cabinet over allegations of land grabbing.
Rajender, who dismissed the allegations, has quit the TRS and joined the BJP. He is seeking re-election on BJP ticket.Though as many as 30 candidates are in the fray, the main contest is among Gellu Srinivas Yadav (TRS), Eatala Rajender (BJP) and Venkat Balmoori (Congress).
