New Delhi:Voting is underway for the by-polls in four assembly constituencies and one Lok Sabha constituency spread across Meghalaya, Odisha, Uttar Pradesh and Punjab. While Odisha's Jharsuguda recorded 41.26 percent voter turnout, UP's Suar and Chhanbey recorded 27.30 percent and 27.40 percent voter turnout till 1 pm respectively.
Punjab's Jalandhar where by-polls for the Lok Sabha seat are being conducted, recorded 30.93 voter turnout till 1 pm. In Meghalaya's Sohiong, the voter turnout reached 43 percent at 11 am. The by-election was necessitated following the death of UDP candidate HDR Lyngdoh just ahead of the Meghalaya assembly elections. Elections took place in the northeastern state on February 27. Six candidates are in the fray with the NPP and the United Democratic Party (UDP), coalition partners of the MDA, eyeing for the seat.
The by-election in Odisha's Jharsuguda was necessitated following the murder of then Health Minister Naba Kishore Das on January 29. The contest here is mainly between the BJD, BJP and Congress though nine candidates are in the fray. All three parties have fielded debutant contestants for the seat. The BJD has fielded Das's daughter Deepali Das. The BJP, meanwhile, has nominated Tankadhar Tripathy. The Congress has fielded Tarun Pandey, the son of late MLA Biren Pandey.
Though Swar and Chhanbey are voting on Wednesday, the focus is more on Swar as it was earlier represented by Abdullah Azam Khan, the son of senior SP leader Azam Khan. The seat fell vacant on February 13 after a Moradabad court sentenced Abdullah Azam Khan to two years in jail in a 15-year-old case. In 2020, the Allahabad High Court set aside his election for not stating his age in the affidavit. Both the constituencies are expected to see a direct face-off between the BJP and the SP.
In Jalandhar, a four-cornered electoral battle between the AAP, Congress, BJP and Shiromani Akali Dal is in the offing. The Lok Sabha (reserved) seat fell vacant following the death of Congress MP Santokh Singh Chaudhary who suffered a cardiac arrest during the party's Bharat Jodo Yatra in January. The Congress has fielded Karamjit Kaur, the wife of Santokh Chaudhary from the seat.
