AAP wins Jalandhar West bypoll, INDIA leading in 10 seats
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has claimed victory in the Jalandhar West Assembly bypoll in Punjab. The election for this seat was necessitated after AAP leader Sheetal Angural switched allegiance to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), leaving the seat vacant. AAP's Mohinder Bhagat won the Jalandhar West seat by more than 23,000 votes. The Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA), of which the AAP is a part, is currently leading in 10 of the remaining 12 seats.
Other key constituencies in the bypoll spotlight
INDIA bloc partner Trinamool Congress (TMC) is leading in four seats in West Bengal, while in Tamil Nadu's Vikravandi assembly constituency, DMK candidate Anniyur Siva is ahead against C Anbumani and Naam Tamilar Katchi's K Abinaya. In Bihar's Rupauli bypoll, Janata Dal (United) candidate Kaladhar Prasad Mandal is leading by 2,433 votes over his nearest independent rival. In Uttarakhand's Manglaur constituency, Congress candidate Qazi Nizamuddin is leading with 12,540 votes.
BJP ahead in Amarwara
In Madhya Pradesh's Amarwara constituency, Kamlesh Pratap Shah of the BJP was ahead by 4,160 votes against Congress candidate Dheeran Shah Invati. The seat became vacant after Kamlesh Shah, a three-time Congress MLA, moved to the BJP in March. Only the Rupauli and Amarwara seats are where the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) is leading.
Vote counting begins, key constituencies in focus
The bypolls, conducted on July 10, are the first electoral exercise since the Lok Sabha elections. The states that held these bypolls are Bihar, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Madhya Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Punjab, and Himachal Pradesh. In the Lok Sabha elections, the BJP won 240 seats, falling short of a majority by 32 seats. However, with its allies in the NDA, it managed to surpass the halfway mark of 272 with a total tally of 293 seats.
