Kolkata: Counting of votes for the by-elections to the Nandigram and Rejinagar Assembly constituencies in West Bengal began at 8 a.m. on Friday, with Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidates Hasirani Rath and Sakharav Sarkar leading in the initial trends.
The Nandigram constituency is in East Midnapore district, while Rejinagar is in Murshidabad district. Polling for both seats was held on October 6.
BJP Leads in Nandigram and Rejinagar
In Nandigram, BJP candidate Hasirani Rath was leading against Congress candidate Milan Pradhan. The All India Trinamool Congress (TMC), led by former Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, was not contesting the bypoll in this constituency.
Rath is the mother of Chandranath Rath, who served as the personal assistant to Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari and was killed in an assassination at Madhyamgram in North 24 Parganas district on May 6.
In Rejinagar, BJP candidate Sakharav Sarkar was ahead of Congress candidate Mohammad Abdullahil Kafi by around 6,000 votes, according to the latest trends available at the time of the report.
The lead in Rejinagar drew attention because the constituency has a Muslim-majority electorate, with more than 65 per cent of voters belonging to the community.
Postal Ballots Counted First, EVM Counting to Follow
When counting began, postal ballots were being counted first. The counting of votes recorded on electronic voting machines (EVMs) was scheduled to follow.
There are 15 counting rounds for each constituency. The final trends were expected to become clearer between noon and 1 p.m.
Why the Two Assembly Seats Went to Bypolls
The Nandigram bypoll became necessary after Suvendu Adhikari, who had won from both Nandigram and Bhabanipur in the West Bengal Assembly elections held earlier this year, retained Bhabanipur. He had defeated his predecessor, Mamata Banerjee, in Bhabanipur by a margin of more than 15,000 votes.
The Rejinagar bypoll followed after former Trinamool Congress legislator Humayun Kabir won from both Naoda and Rejinagar as an Aam Janata Unnayan Party (AJUP) candidate and later chose to retain Naoda.
The counting process was underway as the initial leads emerged, with the final outcome of both constituencies yet to be declared.