Polling began on Thursday morning for assembly by-elections across five key constituencies in four Indian states—Kerala, Punjab, West Bengal, and Gujarat—marking a high-stakes political contest ahead of major state elections.
Voting commenced at 7 AM in the following constituencies: Nilambur (Kerala), Ludhiana West (Punjab), Kaliganj (West Bengal), and Visavadar and Kadi (Gujarat). The counting of votes and declaration of results is scheduled for June 23.
In Kerala’s Nilambur, the bypoll is being closely watched as a potential precursor to the 2026 Assembly elections. The Left Democratic Front (LDF) has fielded M Swaraj, the United Democratic Front (UDF) has nominated Aryadan Shoukath, and the BJP has put forward Advocate Mohan George.
Calling it a “semi-final,” Kerala Leader of Opposition and Congress leader VD Satheesan expressed confidence in a UDF victory, asserting it would mark the start of the front’s return to power. “This is a direct fight between the UDF and LDF. We see this as an opportunity to hold the Pinarayi government accountable after nine years in power,” he told ANI.
In Punjab’s Ludhiana West, the seat fell vacant following the death of AAP MLA Gurpreet Bassi Gogi. The BJP has fielded Jiwan Gupta, while the AAP has nominated Rajya Sabha MP Sanjeev Arora.
In West Bengal’s Kaliganj, the contest features Alifa Ahmed from the All India Trinamool Congress (AITC), Ashish Ghosh from the BJP, and Kabil Uddin Shaikh from the Congress.
The Gujarat battle is spread across two constituencies:
- In Visavadar, Kirit Patel is contesting for the BJP, Nitin Ranpariya for the Congress, and Gopal Italia, former Gujarat AAP president, is also in the fray.
- In Kadi, the BJP has nominated Rajendra Chavda, while Congress is banking on Ramesh Chavda, a former MLA. AAP has fielded Jagdish Chavda.
These by-elections are being seen as an important political litmus test for the major parties as they gear up for the next round of state assembly and Lok Sabha elections.
