Bypolls Results 2023: Oppn Takes 4 Of 7 Seats In First-Ever INDIA vs NDA Contest

The inaugural electoral face-off between the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) and the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (I.N.D.I.A) concluded on Friday, resulting in the Opposition securing four seats, with the BJP emerging victorious in the remaining three.

The constituencies subjected to the bypolls included Ghosi in Uttar Pradesh, Dhupguri in West Bengal, Dumri assembly seat in Jharkhand, Boxanagar and Dhanpur seats in Tripura, Bageshwar in the hill state of Uttarakhand, and Puthuppally seat in Kerala.

A significant contest unfolded in BJP-governed Uttar Pradesh, where the joint candidate from the INDIA bloc, Samajwadi Party's Sudhakar Singh, clinched victory with a substantial margin of over 40,000 votes. He defeated BJP candidate and incumbent MLA Dara Singh Chauhan, who had resigned from the SP, necessitating the bypoll. Singh secured 1,24,427 votes, while Chauhan garnered 81,668 votes. The victory in the Ghosi bypoll seat bolsters the morale of the INDIA bloc as they chart their course for challenging the Narendra Modi-led government in the 2024 Lok Sabha election.

DUMRI: Another significant battle unfolded in Jharkhand's Dumri, where the Opposition's joint candidate, Bebi Devi from the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha, retained the seat previously held by her late husband and sitting MLA Jagarnath Mahto. The INDIA bloc nominee secured approximately 1,35,480 votes, while the NDA candidate Yashoda Devi received around 1,18,380 votes.

PUTHUPALLY: The Congress celebrated Chandy Oommen's victory, the son of the late Congress stalwart Oommen Chandy, who retained the Puthuppally assembly constituency in Kerala by a substantial margin of over 36,000 votes in the bypoll. The veteran Congress leader had represented the constituency for 50 years. The ruling party, CPI(M), fielded Jaick C Thomas as its candidate from this constituency.

BOXANAGAR, DHANPUR: The BJP secured victory in the by-elections for the Dhanpur and Boxanagar assembly seats in Tripura. The BJP candidate, Tafajjal Hossain, won the Boxanagar seat, wresting it from the CPI(M). In Boxanagar, the Left fielded Mizan Hussain, son of the late MLA Samsul Haque, whose passing necessitated the bypoll. Hossain secured 34,146 votes, while his closest rival, Mizan Hossain of the CPI(M), received 3,909 votes.

In Dhanpur, BJP candidate Bindu Debnath clinched the seat, which has a significant tribal population. Debnath secured 30,017 votes, while his closest competitor, Kaushik Chanda of the CPI(M), received 11,146 votes. This constituency was once considered a Left stronghold, but the BJP won it for the first time in the assembly poll held seven months ago.

BAGHESHWAR: Another BJP victory occurred in Uttarakhand, where its candidate Parvati Das triumphed by 2,405 votes, retaining the seat previously held by her late husband and sitting MLA Chandan Ram Das. She secured 33,247 votes, while the Congress candidate Basant Kumar received 30,842 votes.

DHUPGURI: In West Bengal, a unique contest unfolded within the INDIA bloc itself as the Trinamool Congress faced off against the Congress-CPI(M) alliance. The TMC prevailed in the seat as its candidate, Nirmal Chandra Roy, secured victory in the Dhupguri bypoll by over 4,000 votes.

Roy, a history professor, contested against the BJP's Tapasi Roy, the widow of a CRPF jawan who was tragically killed in a terrorist attack in Jammu and Kashmir in 2021. Roy garnered 96,961 votes, while his BJP rival received 92,648 votes.