New Delhi | In a boost to the INDIA bloc, its constituents won 10 of the 13 assembly seats where by-elections were held in seven states, while the BJP managed to bag two and an Independent pocketed one seat as votes were counted on Saturday.
The Congress won four seats - two in BJP-ruled Uttarakhand and two in Himachal Pradesh. The TMC bagged all the four seats in West Bengal while the AAP won the Jalandhar West seat in Punjab and the DMK emerged victorious in the Vikravandi constituency in Tamil Nadu.
The BJP won the Hamirpur seat in Himachal Pradesh while Independent candidate Shankar Singh clinched the Rupauli seat in Bihar.
Voting was held in these seats on July 10.
The Congress hailed the results, saying they "reflect the changing political climate in the country" and it has now become clear that the web of "fear and illusion woven by the BJP has been broken".
West Bengal Chief Minister and TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee thanked the people and said the party will dedicate the by-election and the Lok Sabha poll victories to the "martyrs" on its July 21 Martyrs' Day rally.
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin referred to the INDIA bloc's good show and said BJP should learn lessons from its defeats.
"BJP must realise that without respecting regional sentiments it cannot run the government and the party," he said. He described his party's victory as people's "thanksgiving" to DMK regime's welfare schemes.
Hailing the victory in Madhya Pradesh, Chief Minister Mohan Yadav said the people have reposed their faith in the BJP government's "guarantee of trust".
In Uttarakhand, Congress's Qazi Mohammad Nizamuddin won the Manglaur seat for the fourth time edging out BJP's Kartar Singh Bhadana by a narrow margin of 422 votes. Nizamuddin won the seat twice on a BSP ticket and once on a Congress ticket in the past.
The BSP, which had won the seat in the 2022 assembly polls, was relegated to the third position.
In Badrinath, Congress's Lakhapat Butola, a first-time contestant, scored an upset victory over former minister and MLA Rajendra Bhandari of the BJP whose resignation as a legislator just before the Lok Sabha polls had necessitated the bypoll. Butola's victory margin was 5,224 votes.
Congress candidate Kamlesh Thakur, wife of Himachal Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu, defeated BJP's Hoshiyar Singh to win the Dehra seat by a margin of 9,399 votes. Hardeep Singh Bawa also defeated his nearest rival and BJP candidate K L Thakur in Nalagarh by 8,990 votes. Bawa is a five-time Indian National Trade Union Congress president.
BJP's Ashish Sharma, however, managed to win the Hamirpur seat defeating Congress candidate Pushpinder Verma.
The Congress's strength in the 68-member assembly had dropped from 40 to 34 after six of its MLAs joined the BJP. It has now regained the tally it secured in the assembly elections in 2022, after winning four seats in bypolls -- held along with the Lok Sabha elections in June -- and two more it won on Saturday.
The bypoll results ensured that for the first time in the electoral history of the state, a husband and wife -- Sukhvinder Sukhu and Kamlesh Thakur -- would be members of the Himachal Pradesh assembly. In another first, there will not be a single Independent MLA in the assembly.
In the 2022 assembly elections, three Independents namely Hoshiyar Singh (Dehra), Ashish Sharma (Hamirpur) and K L Thakur (Nalagarh) were elected but they resigned after voting for BJP candidate Harsh Mahajan in the Rajya Sabha election on February 27. They joined the BJP due to which the seats fell vacant.
Himachal Pradesh BJP chief Rajeev Bindal alleged Sukhu spent crores of rupees for the by-elections and involved the entire state government in the poll campaign but still lost in his home district Hamirpur.
He also alleged that the Congress won the two seats by "threatening people, tempting them and misusing" the government machinery.
The Trinamool Congress continued its winning streak from the recent Lok Sabha elections by sweeping the West Bengal bypolls, wresting Raiganj, Bagda and Ranaghat Dakshin seats from the BJP and securing a record victory margin in Maniktala.
TMC candidates Krishna Kalyani, Madhuparna Thakur and Mukut Mani Adhikari won the Raiganj, Bagda, and Ranaghat Dakshin seats respectively, while Supti Pandey won Maniktala in North Kolkata.
In Punjab, Mohinder Bhagat of the ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) won the Jalandhar West seat by defeating BJP nominee Sheetal Angural by a margin of 37,325 votes. The seat fell vacant after Angural resigned as the AAP legislator and joined the BJP in March.
Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann said the victory shows that the people of the state are "very happy" with his government's work.
In Tamil Nadu, the ruling DMK's Anniyur Siva emerged victorious in the Vikravandi assembly constituency, defeating NDA constituent PMK's Ambumani C by 67,757 votes.
In Madhya Pradesh, BJP's Kamlesh Pratap Shah won the Amarwara assembly seat by a margin of 3,027 votes against Congress's Dheeran Sah Invati, while in Bihar, Independent candidate Shankar Singh won the Rupauli seat, defeating JD(U)'s Kaladhar Prasad Mandal by 8,246 votes.
New Delhi | The Congress on Saturday hailed the assembly bypoll results in which the INDIA bloc parties won 10 out of 13 seats, with Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi asserting it has become clear that the web of "fear and illusion" woven by the BJP has been broken.
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge lauded the party workers and said the victory shows that the people have completely rejected the "arrogance, misgovernance and negative politics of the BJP".
The INDIA bloc parties won 10 assembly seats, while the BJP clinched two and an Independent one, as the votes were counted on Saturday for the by-elections held earlier this week on 13 seats in seven states.
The bypolls were held on Wednesday in four seats in West Bengal, three in Himachal Pradesh, two in Uttarakhand, and one each in Punjab, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar and Tamil Nadu.
The Congress, TMC, AAP and DMK are among the INDIA bloc parties that fielded candidates in the bypolls.
The Congress said the results "reflect the changing political climate in the country".
Reacting to the results, Kharge said the party bows before the people for the positive result of the assembly by-elections.
"We thank and express our gratitude to them from the bottom of our hearts for voting for the Congress party candidates. We salute all the Congress workers for their hard work and efforts in adverse circumstances," he said.
"This victory shows that the people have completely rejected the arrogance, misgovernance and negative politics of the BJP," Kharge said.
"This is also a strong proof of the falling political credibility of Modi-Shah ji," he added.
In a post in Hindi on X, Gandhi said, "The results of the by-elections held in 7 states have made it clear that the web of 'fear and illusion' woven by the BJP has been broken. Every class, including farmers, youth, labourers, businessmen and employees wants to completely destroy the dictatorship and establish the rule of justice."
The public is now completely standing with the INDIA bloc for the betterment of their lives and to protect the Constitution, he said.
Meanwhile, the BJP questioned the opposition alliance's "joy" over the results, saying INDIA bloc constituent Congress fought and lost to another constituent TMC in West Bengal.
It "shows nothing except I.N.D.I Alliance's desperation to somehow feel good," BJP's IT department head Amit Malviya said.
He said the Congress should be disappointed for not winning all three seats in Himachal Pradesh despite being in power as the BJP won in Hamirpur.
Reacting to the results, Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra said that in the by-elections held on 13 seats in seven states, the people of the country have given their support to the INDIA bloc.
"The people of Devbhumi Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand have expressed their trust in Congress. Many congratulations to all the winning candidates of Congress and INDIA," she said.
"The people of the country have understood that the politics of misleading people 100 years back and 100 years ahead will not benefit the country. The people want positive politics that improves their present and prepares a clear blueprint for a bright future," Priyanka Gandhi said.
"We are committed to the needs and aspirations of young India," she said.
The Congress won both the assembly bypolls in Uttarakhand and in Himachal Pradesh, it secured two out of the three seats where the bye-elections were held.
In a statement, Congress general secretary K C Venugopal said today's by-poll results stand as a resounding victory for democracy and a strong rebuke to the BJP's "divisive politics".
Out of the 13 seats, the INDIA bloc has secured an impressive 10 seats demonstrating the rejection of the "BJP's anti-people, anti-youth policies, and divisive politics".
"In Himachal Pradesh, the Congress Party has won two out of the three seats in Dehra and Nalagarh, reclaiming our position with a total of 40 seats. This triumph is a testament to the unwavering faith of the people of Himachal who have rejected the BJP's politics of horse trading and defections," he said.
Even amidst their attempts to undermine our democracy, the truth and the will of the people have prevailed, Venugopal asserted.
"Today's results are a tight slap on the BJP's face, showcasing the public's strong disapproval of their pro-rich, dictatorial politics. The defeat of those who abandoned our cause for the BJP in Himachal and Uttarakhand underscores the rejection of opportunism over principled governance," he said.
"Not only that, they used all their dirty tricks departments, be it ED or CBI, to intimidate our leaders. The people, however, rejected this dangerous politics, resoundingly," Venugopal said.
Similarly, in Uttarakhand, the Indian National Congress has emerged victorious in both Badrinath and Mangalur, he said.
This significant win sends a clear message that the misuse of religion for political gains, as seen in Ayodhya and now in Badrinath, will not be endorsed by the electorate, Venugopal said.
"Today's results are not just a political victory; they are a triumph for democracy and constitutional values. They reaffirm the people's commitment to governance that prioritizes welfare and inclusivity over divisive tactics and power grabs," he said.
"As we move forward, the Congress Party reaffirms its commitment to a pro-people agenda and upholding democratic values. We are grateful for the trust placed in us by the electorate and pledge to continue serving with renewed vigour for the remainder of our term and in all future elections," Venugopal said.
"This would not have been possible without the guidance of INC President Shri Mallikarjun Kharge ji, CPP Chairperson, Smt. Sonia Gandhi, LOP Shri Rahul Gandhi ji and Smt. Priyanka Gandhi ji, as well as the hard work of the respective PCC leaders and candidates who dedicatedly worked for this victory," he said.
On the party's victories in Uttarakhand, Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said in a post on X, "Manglaur was wrested from the BSP and in the face of dirty tactics by the BJP. In Badrinath, the sitting MLA was a Congressman who had switched to the BJP during the Lok Sabha polls. He has been rightly punished by the people and the Congress has held on to the seat."
"Both ways the results reflect the changing political climate in the country," he said.
On the Himachal Pradesh bypoll results, Ramesh said that "all machinations of the BJP have failed miserably".
"The Congress has won two of the assembly seats held by Independents who had been lured away as part of Operation Lotus. This is reflective of the significant recovery of the Congress and public disgust with the BJP," he said.
Addressing a press conference, Congress' media and publicity department head Pawan Khera said the public message was very clear in the Lok Sabha elections, but people saw that the government still had the same arrogance and, therefore, they have given a message to the BJP for the second time in a month.
Raising questions over the result in Amarwara in Madhya Pradesh, Khera said this may be the first time in history that officials take lunch break after stopping the counting.
BJP's Kamlesh Shah won the bypoll to Amarwara (ST) assembly constituency in Madhya Pradesh by a margin of 3,027 votes, defeating his nearest Congress rival Dheeran Shah Invati in a close contest after 21 rounds of counting.
"The entire administration got together to defeat the Congress. We thank the voters wholeheartedly because they taught a lesson to those who were talking about changing the Constitution. The public has given a befitting reply to those who destabilize the elected governments," Khera said.
"People are rejecting the BJP's politics because...there is no place for accountability in the BJP's politics, there is no respect for democratic processes, PM Modi does not consider it necessary to answer people's questions. The public sees arrogance in the BJP's politics," he said.
He claimed that Muslim voters were prevented from voting in Manglaur on the day of voting.
"Today the BJP supporters were seen saying that Manglaur is a Muslim dominated area, Congress has to win there. I want to ask them that if it is so then how did Congress win Badrinath and Ayodhya. The BJP is only doing politics by making people fight among themselves, hence the public is giving them a befitting reply," he said.