The Election Commission of India on Monday declared the results of the by-elections held on June 19 across five assembly constituencies in four states, with the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) winning two seats, and the Congress, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), and Trinamool Congress (TMC) winning one seat each.
AAP emerged as the biggest gainer, securing victories in Ludhiana West in Punjab and Visavadar in Gujarat. The Congress claimed the Nilambur seat in Kerala, the BJP retained its stronghold in Kadi, Gujarat, while the Trinamool Congress comfortably took Kaliganj in West Bengal.
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Congress candidate Aryadan Shoukath handed a major setback to the ruling CPI(M) in Kerala by defeating M Swaraj in Nilambur with a margin of 11,077 votes.
Former AAP state president Gopal Italia secured a resounding win in Visavadar, defeating BJP’s Kirit Patel by 17,554 votes. The Congress’ Nitin Ranpariya trailed far behind, managing only 5,501 votes.
In Kadi, Rajendra Chavda of the BJP retained the seat by defeating Congress candidate Ramesh Chavda with a margin of 39,452 votes. The by-election was necessitated following the death of sitting MLA Karsanbhai Punjabhai Solanki in February.
{{/usCountry}}In Kadi, Rajendra Chavda of the BJP retained the seat by defeating Congress candidate Ramesh Chavda with a margin of 39,452 votes. The by-election was necessitated following the death of sitting MLA Karsanbhai Punjabhai Solanki in February.
{{/usCountry}}AAP’s Sanjeev Arora emerged victorious in Ludhiana West, defeating Congress leader Bharat Bhushan Ashu by 10,637 votes, further strengthening AAP’s position in Punjab.
Over in West Bengal, TMC candidate Alifa Ahmed won the Kaliganj seat by a massive margin of 50,049 votes, defeating BJP’s Ashish Ghosh.
The bypolls were necessitated by the deaths of sitting legislators in Gujarat, West Bengal, and Punjab, while resignations led to elections in Nilambur and one seat in Gujarat.
Kejriwal says Gujarat has lost faith in BJP, Congress
Reacting to the Aam Aadmi Party’s victories in the Visavadar and Ludhiana West bypolls, AAP national convener Arvind Kejriwal on Monday said that people in Gujarat are fed up with the BJP and have also rejected the Congress.
Kejriwal, in a post on X (formerly Twitter), said the people of Gujarat are now turning to the Aam Aadmi Party for an alternative. “The people of Gujarat are now fed up with the BJP and are seeing hope in the Aam Aadmi Party,” he wrote in Hindi.
He added that the Ludhiana West result showed growing satisfaction with the AAP government in Punjab. “The people of Punjab are very happy with our work. Compared to 2022, they have voted for us in even larger numbers,” he said.
Kejriwal also thanked voters in both states and noted that the margin of victory in both seats had nearly doubled since the last election. “Many congratulations to all of you on the splendid victory of Aam Aadmi Party in Visavadar and Ludhiana West. Many thanks to the people of Gujarat and Punjab,” he wrote.