The bypoll elections underway in 31 assembly seats across ten states and the Wayanad Lok Sabha constituency in Kerala have attracted significant attention. These bypolls, set for November 23, are largely a result of vacancies created when sitting MLAs contested and won Lok Sabha seats or due to the passing of representatives in some constituencies.
In Kerala, Wayanad’s bypoll is particularly notable, as Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra is making her electoral debut, vying to retain the seat for Congress and build on Rahul Gandhi’s previous wins. She faces opposition from LDF’s Sathyan Mokeri and NDA’s Navya Haridas. Additionally, the Chelakkara seat in Kerala will also see a bypoll.
Rajasthan’s bypolls include seven seats, such as Jhunjhunu and Deoli-Uniara, with Salumbar and Ramgarh requiring elections due to the passing of BJP’s Amritlal Meena and Congress’ Zubair Khan.
In West Bengal, the ruling TMC will defend five of the six seats up for bypolls, including Taldangra and Sitai-SC, while the BJP holds the Madarihat seat.
Assam has five seats—Dholai, Behali, Samaguri, Bongaigaon, and Sidli—where 34 candidates are competing. In Behali, there was a last-minute disagreement within the INDIA bloc, leading Congress to field a candidate despite a prior agreement to support CPI(ML) Liberation.
Notably, in Sikkim, two seats—Soreng-Chakung and Namchi-Singhithang—have already been settled as Sikkim Krantikari Morcha (SKM) candidates Aditya Golay and Satish Chandra Rai won unopposed after their opponents withdrew from the race.
The outcomes of these bypolls are viewed as a significant test for the Congress and INDIA bloc, especially after a lack of unity in recent Haryana assembly polls.
