Bypolls in 5 Assembly seats, 1 Lok Sabha constituency underway
What's the story
Polling is underway for by-elections to five Assembly seats and one Lok Sabha seat across Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Assam and Puducherry. The bypolls are being held in Tamil Nadu's Madurantakam and Dharapuram, Thattanchavady in Puducherry, Rejinagar and Nandigram in West Bengal, and Assam's Nagaon Lok Sabha constituency. The counting of votes will be held on Friday.
Tamil Nadu
Madurantakam, Dharapuram in Tamil Nadu
In Tamil Nadu, the Madurantakam and Dharapuram seats fell vacant after AIADMK MLAs Maragatham Kumaravel and P Sathyabama resigned. Both joined C Joseph Vijay's Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK), which fielded them in the bypolls.
The bypolls will be the first major electoral test for Vijay since he came to power with the help of other parties, including the Congress.
A total of 27 candidates are contesting in Madurantakam, while 30 are in the fray in Dharapuram.
West Bengal
Nandigram and Rejinagar in West Bengal
In West Bengal, the Nandigram seat fell vacant after Suvendu Adhikari resigned as MLA to retain the Bhabanipur seat. The BJP has fielded Hasirani Rath here.
The Mamata-led TMC faction has decided not to field a candidate after its original nominee, Sanchita Pradhan Dey, withdrew from the contest
It is backing Congress candidate Milan Pradhan.
Rejinagar seat fell vacant after Humayun Kabir, who both Rejinagar and Nowda, chose to retain Nowda.
His son Golam Nabi Azad is contesting from here.
Assam
Nagaon Lok Sabha seat in Assam
The Nagaon Lok Sabha seat in Assam fell vacant after Congress MP Pradyut Bordoloi resigned ahead of the assembly elections to join the BJP.
The Congress has fielded former MLA Sibamoni Bora, while the BJP nominated Devasish Sharma for this seat.
AIUDF president Badruddin Ajmal is also contesting from here.
Fifteen candidates are contesting, but the main fight is expected to be between these three.
Puducherry
Thattanchavady in Puducherry
In Puducherry, the Thattanchavady seat fell vacant after Chief Minister N Rangasamy vacated it for Mangalam.
The All India NR Congress has fielded Ashok Anand from this seat, while DMK's K Sethu Selvam and Congress's E Vinayagam are also in the fray.
This election is being seen as a test of the NDA government's popularity in its early months.