Bypoll results 2018: United opposition wrests Kairana, Noorpur from Modi’s BJP

Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party has lost to a united opposition in bypolls in the key state of Uttar Pradesh. The party's candidates lost the Kairana Lok Sabha and Noorpur assembly constituencies by-elections, results of which were announced on May 31. The Congress, Samajwadi Party, Rashtriya Lok Dal and Bahujan Samaj Party got together in these two seats to take on the BJP. While Tabassum Hasan of the RLD defeated Mriganka Singh in Kairana, Samajwadi Party's Naeemul Hasan defeated Avani Singh in Noorpur. Hasan hailed Opposition unity as the key to BJP's defeat. What do the reverses in bypoll results mean for the BJP? Is the party likely to face a united opposition in the 2019 general elections?