New Delhi: Counting begins today for bypolls to seven assembly seats in five states, with outcomes poised to influence regional political dynamics.
Polls were held on April 9 and 23 in Gujarat, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Nagaland, and Tripura after sitting MLAs' deaths triggered these keenly contested elections.
Maharashtra's Baramati seat in Pune district, a Pawar family bastion, is under the spotlight following MLA Ajit Pawar's death in a January 28 plane crash. His wife, NCP leader and Deputy Chief Minister Sunetra Pawar, is the frontrunner.
In Karnataka, Bagalkot and Davanagere South seats saw battles after Congress MLAs H Y Meti and Shamanur Shivashankarappa passed away. BJP fields Veerabhadrayya Charantimath and Srinivas T Dasakariyappa, against Congress's Umesh Meti and Samarth Mallikarjun.
Gujarat's Umreth in Anand district pits BJP's Harshad Parmar—son of late MLA Govind Parmar—against Congress's Bhrugurajsinh Chauhan.
Nagaland's Koridang in Mokokchung features a multi-cornered fight post-BJP MLA Imkong L Imchen's death, with six contenders including alliance nominee Daochier I Imchen (BJP), Congress, NPP, and Independents.
Tripura's Dharmanagar holds a triangular contest after Assembly Speaker Biswa Bandhu Sen's December death, featuring BJP's Jahar Chakraborti, Congress's Chayan Bhattacharjee, and CPI(M)'s Amitabha Datta.
The Goa Ponda bypoll was scrapped by the Bombay High Court hours before polling.
(Inputs from IANS)