New Delhi: Six by-elections across three states and a Union Territory will be held tomorrow, setting the stage for a series of closely watched contests that could offer early clues to the direction of post-election politics.
Polling will take place in four Assembly constituencies — Nandigram and Rejinagar in West Bengal, Madurantakam and Dharapuram in Tamil Nadu — besides Thattanchavady in Puducherry and the Nagaon Lok Sabha constituency in Assam. The seats fell vacant after legislators or MPs who had won from more than one constituency retained one seat and resigned from the other.
In West Bengal, the spotlight will be firmly on Nandigram and Rejinagar, where the BJP’s performance will be closely watched after it swept the April Assembly elections and formed the government in the state for the first time. Particularly, Nandigram carries a strong political and emotional charge. The BJP has fielded Hasirani Rath, mother of Chandranath Rath, a former aide of Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari who was killed shortly after the Assembly election victory.
The fragmented Opposition has added another layer to the contest. The Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool faction has decided to support Congress candidate Milan Pradhan after its nominee withdrew, while the rival Trinamool faction led by Ritabrata Banerjee has fielded Mohammad Eteshamul Haque. The CPI has also entered the race.
Rejinagar presents an even more fragmented contest, with the BJP, the Congress, the CPI-M, the two Trinamool factions, and the Aam Janata Unnayan Party (AJUP) competing. The AJUP has fielded Golam Nabi Azad, son of former MLA Humayun Kabir, who vacated the seat after retaining Nowda.
Tamil Nadu offers a different political test. In Madurantakam and Dharapuram, former AIADMK MLAs K Maragatham Kumaravel and P Sathyabama are seeking re-election on the ruling TVK’s tickets after joining Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay’s party. The contests are four-cornered, with the TVK, the DMK, the AIADMK, and the CPI candidates in the fray. With 27 candidates in Madurantakam and 30 in Dharapuram, turnout and vote fragmentation could prove decisive.
Puducherry’s Thattanchavady and Assam’s Nagaon add further dimensions to the bypoll picture, with both contests testing the strength of the ruling alliances and their ability to convert broader electoral gains into constituency-level victories.
Votes will be counted on October 9.
Beyond individual results, Tuesday’s polling will be watched for three larger signals: whether the BJP can sustain its momentum after moving into government, who can emerge as the principal Opposition challenger, and whether fragmented regional forces can retain their electoral relevance.
(IANS)
