The voter turnout in the bypolls to Nandigram and Rejinagar Assembly seats in West Bengal was 58.37 per cent till 1 pm on Tuesday (October 6), an official said. Polling began at 7 am and will continue till 6 pm.
The Nandigram seat in Purba Medinipur district recorded a 60.32 per cent turnout till 1 pm, while Rejinagar in Murshidabad registered 56.43 per cent during the same period.
A poll panel official said voting was mostly “peaceful”, barring a few untoward incidents. “We are witnessing a good turnout in both the Assembly constituencies, where adequate central forces have been deployed,” the official said.
Assam records 56 per cent polling
Meanwhile, in Assam, over 56.35 per cent of the 19.05 lakh voters exercised their franchise in the by-election to the Nagaon Lok Sabha seat till 1 pm. No untoward incident has been reported so far, an official said.
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Polling commenced at 7 am and will continue till 5 pm. “Polling has been peaceful so far, as no untoward incident has been reported from any polling station in the eight Assembly segments under the Lok Sabha constituency. The voting percentage was 56.35 per cent till 1 pm,” the official said.
The highest turnout of 61.48 per cent was recorded in the Laharighat Assembly constituency and the lowest, 47.07 per cent, in Nagaon-Batadraba till 1 pm.
Tamil Nadu votes in two SC seats
Voting in the SC reserved constituencies of Madurantakam and Dharapuram byelections in Tamil Nadu was progressing briskly on Tuesday (October 6) with no major untoward incidents or widespread technical failure. Dharapuram sustained the momentum since morning, registering 37.28 per cent polling, according to EC. Madurantakam registered 35.55 per cent polling by 11 am.
Brisk polling was witnessed in the by-election to Thattanchavady Assembly constituency in Puducherry too, with 39.16 per cent of the voters casting their vote in the first four hours.
Both the seats in Tamil Nadu, Madurantakam in Chengalpattu and Dharapuram in Tiruppur, are reserved for Scheduled Caste (SC) candidates.
The bypolls were necessitated as former AIADMK MLAs K Maragatham Kumaravel and P Sathyabama vacated the seats after joining Vijay’s TVK. Vijay has fielded both the former MLAs from their respective constituencies.
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The DMK has fielded former MLA I Paranthamen in Madurantakam and Suganya in Dharapuram. Vijay campaigned for Sathyabama through a 40-km roadshow, targeting the DMK over remarks against women and saying such attacks had “crossed the line”. He added that he would not remain silent.
Puducherry bypoll sees 11 candidates
In Thattanchavady, Chief Minister N Rangasamy’s resignation led to the bypoll. The election comes four months after the NDA government led by Rangasamy took office and is being seen as a test for the ruling alliance.
Eleven candidates are in the fray, though the contest is mainly between the AINRC-led NDA, Congress and its former ally DMK.
Bengal seats under tight security
West Bengal is voting in Nandigram and Rejinagar amid tight security. Seventy-one companies of central forces have been deployed for the two seats, with polling scheduled to end at 6 pm.
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Nandigram was the centre of Mamata Banerjee’s anti-land-acquisition movement that catapulted the TMC to power in 2011. BJP’s Suvendu Adhikari defeated her there in 2021 and won the seat again in the 2026 Assembly election. He retained Bhabanipur, leading to the bypoll in Nandigram.
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The BJP has fielded Hasirani Rath, whose son Chandranath Rath, a former aide of Adhikari, was shot dead on May 6, two days after the BJP won the Assembly election. The Mamata Banerjee-led TMC faction’s candidate Sanchita Pradhan Dey withdrew after meeting Adhikari. Mamata later backed Congress nominee Milan Pradhan and described the move as an effort to strengthen the INDIA bloc.
The rival TMC faction led by Ritabrata Banerjee has fielded Mohammad Eteshamul Haque, while the CPI has nominated Santigopal Giri.
Rejinagar has five main contenders
The Rejinagar seat fell vacant after Aam Janata Unnayan Party (AJUP) chief Humayun Kabir, who won both Rejinagar and Nowda in the 2026 Assembly election, retained Nowda. AJUP has fielded his son Golam Nabi Azad in the seat.
Kabir was detained by Rejinagar police during the day while voting was in progress. Police took him away from his party office in Rejinagar after he cast his vote earlier in the day. The reason for the detention was not immediately known.
BJP nominee Sakharav Sarkar, Mamata-led TMC candidate Rabiul Alam Chowdhury, rival TMC candidate Safiuzzaman Sheikh, Congress nominee Mohammad Abdullahil Kafi, and CPI(M)'s Syed Asad Ali are also in the race.
Rejinagar has 2.57 lakh electors, while Nandigram has 2.67 lakh voters. There are 315 polling stations in Rejinagar and 323 in Nandigram. Webcasting is available at all booths.
Assam votes in Nagaon Lok Sabha seat
In Assam, BJP’s Devashish Sharma, former Congress MLA Sibamoni Bora and AIUDF chief Badruddin Ajmal are the main candidates among 15 contestants in Nagaon constituency.
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The seat fell vacant after Congress MP Pradyut Bordoloi resigned and later contested the Dispur Assembly election on a BJP ticket. The BJP is seeking to expand its base in the Muslim-majority constituency, while Congress is trying to retain its minority support. The AIUDF is seeking to retain its influence after its strength fell to two MLAs from 16 in the April Assembly election.
The constituency has 19.05 lakh voters, including 9.43 lakh women and 50 third-gender electors. Voting is taking place at 2,312 polling stations, including five auxiliary booths. Of these, 624 have been identified as sensitive.
Polling began at 7 am for by-elections in Puducherry, West Bengal, Assam and Tamil Nadu and will end at 5 pm or 6 pm. Counting will take place on October 9.
(With agency inputs)