By-elections are being held for three assembly seats in three states across the country. The results of the assembly by-elections in Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, and Gujarat are imminent. All eyes are on Bankipur in Bihar and Datia in Madhya Pradesh. The Bharatiya Janata Party considers both seats its traditional seats, while the BJP is also trying to retain Manjalpur in Gujarat. Voting for these seats took place on July 30.
The Bankipur seat fell vacant due to BJP National President Nitin Naveen’s election to the Rajya Sabha, while the by-election in Datia was necessitated by the conviction of Congress MLA Rajendra Bharti. The Manjalpur seat in Gujarat is being held due to the death of the incumbent MLA.
In Manjalpur, there is a direct contest between Satish Govindbhai Patel of the BJP and Bhikhabhai Rabari of the Congress. In Bankipur, the BJP has fielded Neeraj Kumar Sinha, while Jan Suraj Party founder Prashant Kishore and Rekha Kumari of the Rashtriya Janata Dal are also in the fray. In Datia, BJP candidate Ashutosh Tiwari, supported by former Home Minister Narottam Mishra, is facing Ghanshyam Singh of the Congress. Read the live blog to find out who is winning on all three seats and who is leading in the trends.