New Delhi [India], July 13 (ANI): The results of assembly bypolls came as a setback for BJP which won only two of 13 seats with INDIA bloc winning 10 seats and an independent candidate winning a seat in Bihar defeating the ruling NDA.
The results brought a lot of comfort to Congress, which won two of three seats in Himachal Pradesh and two seats in Uttarakhand. Congress winning two seats in Himachal Pradesh has increased the comfort factor for the Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu government which now has 40 MLAs against 28 of BJP.
The Congress had failed to win any seat in the two states in the Lok Sabha polls.Some of those who lost the assembly polls were leaders who had joined BJP after quitting their parties.
Polling took place on July 10 for the assembly seats in seven States: Bihar, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Madhya Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Punjab, and Himachal Pradesh.
Congress leader KC Venugopal targeted the BJP and said that the results of the bye-elections in the country reflects a resounding victory for democracy and a strong rebuke to the BJP’s divisive politics.
In a statement issued by the party’s General Secretary (Organisation), Venugopal said, “Today’s by-poll results stand as a resounding victory for democracy and a strong rebuke to the BJP’s divisive politics. Out of the 13 seats contested across Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, West Bengal, Bihar, Punjab, and Tamil Nadu, the INDIA alliance has secured an impressive 10 seats demonstrating the rejection of the BJP’s anti-people, anti-youth policies, and divisive politics.”
Stepping up his attacks on the BJP, he said, “Even amidst their attempts to undermine our democracy, the truth and the will of the people have prevailed. Today’s results are a tight slap on the BJP’s face, showcasing the public’s strong disapproval of their pro-rich, dictatorial politics.”
He added, “The defeat of those who abandoned our cause for the BJP in Himachal and Uttarakhand underscores the rejection of opportunism over principled governance. Not only that, they used all their dirty tricks departments, be it ED or CBI, to intimidate our leaders. The people, however, rejected this dangerous politics resoundingly.”
Elaborating on the number of seats won by the Congress in Himachal Pradesh, Venugopal said, “In Himachal Pradesh, the Congress party has won two out of the three seats in Dehra and Nalagarh, reclaiming our position with a total of 40 seats. This triumph is a testament to the unwavering faith of the people of Himachal who have rejected the BJP’s politics of horse trading and defections.”
The Congress leader in his statement also talked about the results in Uttarakhand and said that the party in the state emerged victorious in both Badrinath and Mangalur. “This significant win sends a clear message that the misuse of religion for political gains, as seen in Ayodhya and now in Badrinath, will not be endorsed by the electorate,” Venugopal said.
Asserting that the results of bye-elections are not just a political victory; but a triumph for democracy and constitutional values, he added, “They reaffirm the people’s commitment to governance that prioritizes welfare and inclusivity over divisive tactics and power grabs. As we move forward, the Congress Party reaffirms its commitment to a pro-people agenda and upholding democratic values.”
He added, “We are grateful for the trust placed in us by the electorate and pledge to continue serving with renewed vigour for the remainder of our term and in all future elections.”
The Congress leader also expressed his gratitude towards other party leaders and said, “This would not have been possible without the guidance of Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, Congress Parliamentary Party (CPP) Chairperson Sonia Gandhi, LOP Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi ji, as well as the hard work of the respective Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC) leaders and candidates who dedicatedly worked for this victory.”
The by-elections were held in one seat of Bihar, Tamil Nadu, Punjab, and Madhya Pradesh, two seats of Uttarakhand, three seats of Himachal Pradesh, and four seats of Uttarakhand.
The constituencies included Raiganj, Ranaghat Dakshin, Bagda, and Maniktala in West Bengal; Dehra, Hamirpur, and Nalagarh in Himachal Pradesh; Badrinath and Manglaur in Uttarakhand; Jalandhar West in Punjab; Rupauli in Bihar; Vikravandi in Tamil Nadu; and Amarwara in Madhya Pradesh.
In Himachal Pradesh, Congress secured a win on two out of three seats, where Kamlesh Thakur from Dehra and Hardeep Singh Bawa from Nalagarh secured victory. Ashish Sharma from BJP secured victory in Hamirpur. Thakur defeated BJP’s Hoshiyar Singh by a margin of 9,399 votes. Meanwhile, Bawa defeated BJP’s KL Thakur by a margin of 8,990 votes. On the other hand, Sharma defeated Dr Pushpinder Verma of Congress by a margin of 1,571 votes.
In Punjab, the INDIA alliance’s partner Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) secured victory in Jalandhar West. AAP’s Mohinder Bhagat defeated BJP’s Sheetal Angural by a margin of 37,325 votes.
In Tamil Nadu also, INDIA alliance partner DMK secured a win from Vikravandi seat. Anniyar Siva defeated Anbumani C. of Pattali Makkal Katchi party by a margin of 67757 votes.
Uttarakhand, which is ruled by BJP, witnessed the party losing both the two seats and saw the victory of Congress. In Badrinath, Lakhapat Singh Butola defeated Rajendra Singh Bhandari by a margin of 5224 votes, whereas in Manglaur, which saw a very close competition, Qazi Mohammad Nizamuddin secured victory against BJP’s Kartar Singh Bhadana by a margin of 422 votes.
In all the four seats of West Bengal, All India Trinamool Congress, which is the partner in the INDIA alliance, secured victory and defeated the BJP. In Raiganj, Krishna Kalyani defeated BJP’s Manas Kumar Ghosh by a margin of 50,077 votes. Ranaghat Dakshin, TMC’s Mukut Mani Adhikari secured a win against Manoj Kumar Biswas of BJP by a margin of 39,048 votes. In Bagda, Madhuparna Thakur defeated Binay Kumar Biswas of BJP by a margin of 33,455 votes. In Maniktala, Supti Pandey secured a win against BJP’s Kalyan Chaubey by a margin of 62,312 votes.
In Bihar, neither the JDU of the BJP-led NDA nor the RJD of the INDIA alliance managed to secure a victory. The Rupauli seat in Bihar saw the win of independent candidate Shankar Singh, who defeated JDU’s Kaladhar Prasad Mandal by a margin of 8,246 and RJD’s Bima Bharti. Notably, the bye-election in Rupaul was necessitated by the resignation of sitting MLA Bima Bharti, who had won the seat for JD(U) several times in the past but quit the party recently to contest Lok Sabha elections on an RJD ticket.
In Madhya Pradesh, the BJP managed to retain Amarwara. Here, BJP’s Kamlesh Pratap Shah secured victory against Congress’ Dheeran Sah Sukharam Das Invati by a margin of 3,027 votes.
The Congress leaders, including Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi and Mallikarjun Kharge. Rahul Gandhi targeted the BJP and said that the results of the bye-elections reflect that the people of the nation want to demolish dictatorship and are standing with the INDIA bloc to establish rule of justice.
Taking to his official X handle, Rahul Gandhi said, “The results of the bye-elections in seven states have made it clear that the web of fear and confusion woven by the BJP has been broken.”
He added, “Every class, including farmers, youth, labourers, businessmen and employed people want to completely destroy dictatorship and establish the rule of justice.”
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge asserted that the bypoll results were also “strong evidence of the falling political credibility” of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah. The leader also asserted that the people are now in support of the INDIA bloc and said, “The public is now completely standing with INDIA for the betterment of their lives and protection of the Constitution.”
Following the victory of Congress candidates in two out of three assembly constituencies in Himachal Pradesh, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra expressed happiness and congratulated all the winning candidates of the Congress party and INDIA bloc in the by-polls held on 13 seats across seven states in the country.
“The people of the country have extended their support to the INDI alliance in the by-elections held on 13 seats in seven states. The people of Himachal Pradesh have expressed their faith in Congress. Many congratulations to all the winning candidates of Congress and INDI alliance,” said Priyanka Gandhi. (ANI)
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