Assembly By-Elections Kick Off in India

New Delhi - Voting is underway today for 31 Assembly seats across 10 Indian states, as well as the Wayanad Lok Sabha constituency in Kerala. The by-elections, while not impacting any state governments, are being closely watched as a test for the Congress party and the INDIA bloc, following their recent disunity in the Haryana Assembly polls.

Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, Congress General Secretary, is making her electoral debut in the Wayanad Lok Sabha seat, formerly held by her brother Rahul Gandhi. She faces a challenge in maintaining the seat's Congress stronghold and surpassing her brother's victory margin from the previous two elections. Her opponents include Sathyan Mokeri of the Left Democratic Front (LDF), Navya Haridas of the BJP, and 13 other candidates.

Other key contests include by-elections for seven seats in Rajasthan, six in West Bengal, five in Assam, four in Bihar, three in Karnataka, two in Madhya Pradesh, and one each in Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Kerala, and Meghalaya.

In Assam, the INDIA bloc faces a challenge in presenting a united front after disagreements over candidate selection for the Behali seat. The Congress fielded its candidate, Jayanta Borah, in Behali, Assam, despite the alliance's resolution to give the seat to CPI(ML) Liberation's Lakhikanta Kurmi. The by-elections in Karnataka see JD(S) leader Nikhil Kumaraswamy contesting from Channapatna, a seat vacated by his father and Union Minister H D Kumaraswamy. In Madhya Pradesh, the Budhni seat is up for grabs after former Chief Minister and current Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan vacated it upon his election to the Lok Sabha.

The Vijaypur bypoll in Sheopur was called after Congress MLA Ramniwas Rawat joined the BJP and became a minister in the Mohan Yadav Cabinet. The counting of votes for all by-elections is scheduled for November 23.