Bargarh/Jaipur/Patna: The high blitz election campaign for the December 5 by-poll in Odisha's Padampur, Rajasthan's Sardarshahar, and Bihar's Kurhani assembly seat ended on Saturday. The local administration asked outsiders to leave the place for smooth conduct of the voting. The campaigning in Padampur was intense and noisy as the by-poll results could have an impact on Odisha politics.
Whereas in Bihar, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's JD(U) is locked in a straight contest with the BJP, for the first time since it dumped its former ally to join the Mahagathbandhan. In Rajasthan, the Sardarshahar seat was held by Congress MLA Bhanwar Lal Sharma (77) who passed away on October 9 after a prolonged illness, which necessitated the by-poll. Polling will be held on Monday from 8 am to 5 pm and the results will be declared on December 8.
The by-poll in Padampur is considered to be the last election in the state before the next general elections for the Lok Sabha and Odisha Assembly in 2024. The by-poll result may not change the configuration of the state Assembly but may impact the politics in the state. Though Odisha has witnessed at least five by-polls since 2019, the difference in Padampur was clearly marked as the campaign saw big names hitting the campaign trail.
While in Bihar the success of JD(U) candidate Manoj Singh Kushwaha, a former MLA, will cement the impression that the chief minister remains an X factor in the politics of the state. A loss, on the other hand, may embolden the detractors who have been insisting the JD(U) de facto leader was past his prime. Seventy-one-year-old Kumar had addressed a rally on the penultimate day of campaigning.
Subsequently, the Congress has fielded Late Sharma's son Anil Kumar while former MLA Ashok Kumar is the BJP candidate for Rajasthan's Sardarshahar assembly seat. Eight other candidates are in the fray: Lalchand of the Rashtriya Loktantrik Party (RLP), Sanwarmal Meghwal of the Communist Party of India (Marxist), Parmana Ram of Indian People's Green Party, and Independent candidates Subhash Chandra, Vijay Pal Singh Sheoran, Umesh Sahu, Prem Singh, and Surendra Singh Rajpurohit.
The ruling Congress has exuded confidence in retaining the seat while the opposition BJP said it has made all efforts to wrest the seat from the Congress. (Agency inputs)
