The BJP won both Assembly by-elections in West Bengal on Friday, October 9, while its candidate Devashish Sharma won the Nagaon Lok Sabha bypoll in Assam. In Tamil Nadu, Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay’s Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) won the Dharapuram and Madurantakam Assembly seats, while the NDA retained Thattanchavady in Puducherry through its ally, the All India N.R. Congress (AINRC).
The results were declared after voting on October 6, with counting taking place under tight security. The bypolls covered five Assembly seats in West Bengal, Tamil Nadu and Puducherry, along with the Nagaon Lok Sabha constituency in Assam.
West Bengal: BJP wins Rejinagar by 75,816 votes
The BJP won the Rejinagar Assembly seat in West Bengal’s Murshidabad district by a margin of 75,816 votes, making a breakthrough in a constituency with nearly 70% Muslim voters.
BJP candidate Shankharavh Sarkar secured 1,29,914 votes, or 63.14% of the total. His nearest rival, Aam Janata Unnayan Party (AJUP) candidate Golam Nabi Azad, received 54,098 votes, or 26.29%.
Congress candidate Abdullahil Kafi finished with 6,168 votes, followed by Mamata All India Trinamool Congress candidate Rabiul Alam Chowdhury with 3,847 votes. The CPI(M) received 3,797 votes, while Safiuzzaman Saikh of the Democratic Trinamool Congress (DTMC), a breakaway TMC faction, secured 2,044 votes.
The BJP’s victory came as opposition parties failed to put up a strong challenge. The constituency has traditionally seen contests involving the Trinamool Congress, Congress and regional political groups. However, the result alone does not show how individual communities voted.
The bypoll was held after AJUP founder Humayun Kabir vacated the seat. A former TMC leader, Kabir had won Rejinagar by more than 58,000 votes in the 2026 Assembly election but retained Nowda. His son, Golam Nabi Azad, contested the by-election on the AJUP ticket.
West Bengal: Hasirani Rath wins Nandigram by 1.22 lakh votes
The BJP also secured a major victory in Nandigram, where candidate Hasirani Rath defeated Congress nominee Milan Pradhan by 1,22,753 votes.
Rath received 1,64,427 votes, while Pradhan secured 41,674 votes. Rath is the mother of Chandranath Rath, the slain personal assistant of Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari.
CPI candidate Santi Gopal Giri finished third with 5,779 votes, while Ali Md Sabe Miraj Khan of the All India Secular Front (ISF) received 1,607 votes. Other candidates, including those from the Left Front and the DTMC, lost their security deposits.
With victories in both Nandigram and Rejinagar, the BJP made a clean sweep of West Bengal’s two Assembly bypolls.
Assam: BJP Devashish Sharma wins Nagaon Lok Sabha bypoll
BJP candidate Devashish Sharma won the Nagaon Lok Sabha by-election in Assam, defeating AIUDF chief Badruddin Ajmal by a margin of 1,76,391 votes.
Sharma secured 6,61,259 votes, while Ajmal received 4,84,868 votes. Congress candidate Sibamoni Bora finished third with 1,17,060 votes.
Earlier counting updates had shown Sharma with 5,28,938 votes against Ajmal’s 3,82,758 and Bora’s 95,881. Sharma led in four Assembly segments, while Ajmal was ahead in four Muslim-majority segments.
The constituency recorded a voter turnout of 76.19%. Counting began at 8 am on Friday at two centres in Nagaon under tight security.
The by-election became necessary after former Congress MP Pradyut Bordoloi resigned from the Lok Sabha seat to contest the Dispur Assembly election on a BJP ticket. Sharma, a former IAS officer, thanked voters for supporting his development agenda.
Tamil Nadu: TVK wins Dharapuram by 9,471 votes
Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay’s TVK won the Dharapuram Assembly by-election, defeating the DMK by 9,471 votes.
TVK candidate P. Sathyabama secured 66,841 votes, while DMK nominee S. Suganya received 57,370 votes. AIADMK candidate K. Bhanumathi finished third with 45,280 votes.
Sathyabama had won the seat as an AIADMK candidate in the May 2026 Assembly election. She later resigned as an MLA and joined the ruling TVK, leading to the bypoll.
Meanwhile, DMK chief M.K. Stalin accused Vijay of violating the Model Code of Conduct by announcing welfare initiatives after the by-election was notified.
Tamil Nadu: TVK wins Madurantakam by 20,081 votes
The TVK also won the Madurantakam Assembly by-election, defeating the DMK by 20,081 votes.
TVK candidate K. Maragatham Kumaravel secured 72,149 votes, while DMK candidate I. Paranthaman received 52,068 votes. AIADMK nominee S. Kanitha Sampath finished third with 42,370 votes.
During counting, Kumaravel had built a lead of 17,305 votes by the 16th round, with 63,391 votes against Paranthaman’s 46,086. Her final vote tally increased to 72,149.
Like Sathyabama, Kumaravel had won the seat as an AIADMK candidate in May 2026 before resigning and joining the TVK. The results marked a change from the previous Assembly election, when the AIADMK won both seats. This time, the TVK won both, while the DMK finished second in each constituency.
The victories are a boost for Vijay’s minority government and strengthen the party’s position ahead of five more expected by-elections.
Puducherry: NDA ally AINRC retains Thattanchavady
In Puducherry, the ruling NDA secured a victory in the Thattanchavady Assembly by-election through its ally, the All India N.R. Congress (AINRC).
AINRC candidate Ashok Anand defeated Congress nominee E. Vinayagam by around 8,482 votes, retaining the seat for the ruling alliance.
The AINRC is led by Puducherry Chief Minister N. Rangasamy. The victory came as results were declared across the four regions on Friday, with the BJP winning both seats in West Bengal, the TVK taking both bypolls in Tamil Nadu and the NDA retaining Thattanchavady in Puducherry.
Overall, the results brought major gains for the BJP in West Bengal and Assam, while Vijay’s TVK strengthened its position in Tamil Nadu. The outcome also gave the ruling NDA a win in Puducherry, making the bypoll results important for the political balance in all four regions.
