New Delhi: The by-polls in three Lok Sabha and 30 assembly constituencies across different states is being held today (October 30). The three parliamentary constituencies that are going for poll today are Madhya Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh and the UT of Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu.
As far as the assembly constituencies are concerned, Andhra Pradesh will hold an election on one seat, Assam on five, Bihar on two, Haryana on one, Himachal Pradesh on three, Karnataka on two, Madhya Pradesh on three, Maharashtra on one, Meghalaya on three, Mizoram on one, Nagaland on one, Rajasthan in two constituencies, Telangana in one and West Bengal on four seats.
In Madhya Pradesh, there is a direct contest between the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Congress in Prithvipur, Raigaon (SC) and Jobat (ST) assembly seats.
In Rajasthan too, there is a direct contest between the Congress and the BJP in Dhariawad and Vallabhnagar assembly seats.
In Maharashtra, the single assembly seat of Deglur will see a total of 12 candidates on the ballot, including those from Congress and the BJP.
While in West Bengal, the main contenders in the Dinhata, Santipur, Khardaha and Gosaba (SC) assembly seats are the ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) and the BJP.
In Haryana, the Ellenabad assembly seat is seeing a triangular contest between the Indian National Lok Dal (INLD), the Congress and the ruling BJP-JJP alliance.
The two seats voting in Bihar - Tarpur and Kusheshwar Asthan - are also seen as an important test for Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, whose party Janata Dal (United) - already the smaller party in the ruling alliance - must retain both.
Both of Karnataka's assembly seats, Hanagal and Sindgi, are in Lingayat dominated North Karnataka. Lingayats are the single largest community in the state and are mostly concentrated in the northern region. The elections are crucial for the BJP as Hanagal falls in the home district of Lingayat leader Basavaraj Bommai, who replaced BS Yediyurappa as Chief Minister of the state in July.
In Assam, the BJP is aiming to sweep the three out of five seats it's contesting which will take them closer to a simple majority. With 59 seats, BJP is five short to a majority in the state and is dependent on the Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) and the United People's Party Liberal (UPPL). The opposition parties Congress and Badruddin Ajmal-led All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF), who contested the assembly elections in the state together, have broken up their alliance and will contest separately.
The counting will take place on November 2.