7 Assembly Constituencies In 6 States Will Vote In Byelections

The seats are divided between Bihar (Mokama and Gopalganj), Maharashtra (Andheri East), Telangana (Munugode), Haryana (Adampur), and Odisha (Dhamnagar-SC). The by-polls, coming just before assembly elections in Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh hold high stakes for all.

Following the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the BJP will be eager to see how far it has sustained its momentum.

Andheri (E), Maharashtra

The first major election after the change of guard at Mantralaya and the "split" in the Shiv Sena.

A political observer says that the BJP's decision may have been influenced by the concern of lending prestige to a bypoll whose outcome, if it went in favour of the Uddhav Sena, would have adversely affected the BJP-Shinde alliance's chances in the upcoming Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation elections.

The BMC is India's richest civic body, and all parties will be eager to control it.

Mokama & Gopalganj, Bihar

In Bihar, too, this is the 1st major poll after the political "realignment" that saw JD(U) parting ways with the BJP and joining hands with RJD, Congress, and some other parties to form a Grand Alliance govt.

Can BJP use the "criminal nexus" allegation that it has used for a long to attack the RJD, to impress Mokama voters? In contrast, the Gopalganj seat fell vacant after Subhash Singh, a BJP MLA, passed away. This time, his widow is running for the BJP.

Munugode, Telangana

With Komatireddy Raj Gopal Reddy quit the Congress and also as MLA in August and joined the BJP, this bypoll was necessitated. Also, the bypoll comes after state CM KCR has spelt out his national ambitions for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

The BJP has its eyes on the state polls due in 2023, and has launched a high-voltage campaign to make inroads in the Telangana.

The seat will see a 3-way contest between Congress, BJP and KCR's TRS.

Adampur, Haryana

Kuldeep Bishnoi joined the BJP last August after expelled from Congress for "anti-party activities." Bishnoi also resigned from the Haryana assembly as Adampur MLA, necessitating a bypoll.

AAP registered a great performance in the neighbouring state Punjab and hoping to make it a 3-way contest with the Congress.

Gola Gokrannath, UP

After the death of BJP's Arvind Giri, the seat fell vacant . With Congress and BSP not fielding cadidates, it will be a direct fight between SP and BJP.

Dhamnagar, Odisha

After the death of BJP MLA Bishu Charan Sethi in September. The party has given the ticket to his son Suryabanshi Suraj Sthitaprajna. Rival BJD has fielded a woman candidate- Abanti Das.