All eyes will especially be on Bengal, which voted in the BJP – and Tamil Nadu, where actor-politician Vijay’s new party Tamilaga Vettri Khazagham won an unprecedented victory. Six bye-elections across three states and a Union Territory will be held today – a series of closely watched contests that could be a referendum to the new governments elected earlier this year.
Bengal’s big contest will be on Nandigram – which was won by Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari who chose to keep Kolkata’s Bhabanipur, the seat of his predecessor Mamata Banerjee. But the BJP’s performance will be most closely watched In Rejinagar, won by Trinamool’s rebel leader Humayun Kabir who later formed his own party. Polling will take place in Nandigram and Rejinagar in West Bengal, Madurantakam and Dharapuram in Tamil Nadu. Puducherry’s Thattanchavady and Assam’s the Nagaon Lok Sabha constituency are also due for polls. The BJP has fielded Hasirani Rath, mother of Chandranath Rath, a former aide of Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari, from the constituency. Chandranath Rath was killed shortly after the Assembly election victory. The contest here will be multi-cornered, with the BJP, the Congress, the CPM, the two Trinamool factions, and the Aam Janata Unnayan Party in fray. The AJUP has fielded Golam Nabi Azad, son of Kabir, who vacated the seat after retaining Nowda. The Election Commission has tight security measures to ensure peaceful polling in this violence prone zone. The two by-polls in the southern state will be a test for Vijay’s TVK, which fell short of majority after the April election and had to tie-up with the Congress to form government.
Thirty-four companies of central forces have been deployed here along with 819 state police personnel to guard the 315 polling stations.
