Polling began on Tuesday (Oct 6) morning for by-elections to five Assembly constituencies across West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, and Puducherry, along with the Nagaon Lok Sabha seat in Assam. The elections are being closely watched as a test for several ruling and opposition parties following the 2026 Assembly and Lok Sabha elections. Voting is taking place in Nandigram and Rejinagar in West Bengal, Madurantakam and Dharapuram in Tamil Nadu, Thattanchavady in Puducherry and Nagaon in Assam.&nbsp;Counting of votes is scheduled for October 9, with the Election Commission saying the entire election process will be completed by October 11.Also read | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/supreme-court-cji-surya-kant-eci-modified-form-6-sir-1791194930792">CJI Surya Kant says Supreme Court never approved modified Form 6 for SIR</a><h2>West Bengal bypolls: Nandigram, Rejinagar in focus</h2>In West Bengal, bypolls are being held in Nandigram and Rejinagar. The Nandigram seat fell vacant after Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari won both Nandigram and Bhabanipur in the 2026 Assembly elections and chose to retain Bhabanipur. The BJP has fielded Hasirani Rath from Nandigram.The Rejinagar seat was vacated after Aam Janata Unnayan Party chief Humayun Kabir, who had also won Nowda, chose to retain the latter constituency. The bypoll has attracted candidates from several parties, including AJUP, BJP, Congress and CPI.The two Bengal seats have emerged as closely watched contests after significant political changes in the state following the Assembly election.Also read | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/delhi-police-register-3-firs-over-jantar-mantar-protests-demanding-cec-gyanesh-kumar-s-resignation-1791013486008">Delhi Police register 3 FIRs over Jantar Mantar protests demanding CEC Gyanesh Kumar's resignation</a><h2>Tamil Nadu bypolls: Madurantakam, Dharapuram contests</h2>In Tamil Nadu, voters are casting ballots in the reserved Madurantakam (SC) seat in Chengalpattu district and Dharapuram (SC) in Tiruppur district. The Election Commission said the vacancies followed the resignations of Maragatham Kumaravel and P Sathyabama.Madurantakam has turned into a multi-cornered contest involving TVK's Maragatham Kumaravel, DMK's Paranthaman, AIADMK's Kanitha Sampath, CPI(M)'s Suganthi and NTK's Janakiraman.In Dharapuram, the main candidates include TVK's P Sathyabama, DMK's S Suganya, AIADMK's K Banumathi, CPI's P Lakshmanan and NTK's M Karthika.The contests are also significant because the CPI and CPI(M), which extend support to the TVK-led government, are contesting separately in the bypolls.<h2>Nagaon: BJP, Congress, AIUDF in three-way fight</h2>The Nagaon Lok Sabha bypoll in Assam is witnessing a three-way contest between the BJP, Congress and AIUDF.The BJP has fielded former IAS officer Debashish Sharma, while Congress has nominated former Batadroba MLA Sibamoni Bora. AIUDF chief Badruddin Ajmal's entry has meanwhile turned the contest into a triangular battle.The seat fell vacant after former Congress MP Pradyut Bordoloi resigned and later joined the BJP. He subsequently won the Dispur Assembly seat in the 2026 Assam elections.Puducherry's Thattanchavady also votesPolling is also underway in the Thattanchavady Assembly constituency in Puducherry. The seat fell vacant after Chief Minister and AINRC leader N Rangasamy, who won both Thattanchavady and Mangalam in the April Assembly election, chose to retain Mangalam. AINRC has fielded former legislator Ashok Anand with NDA backing.The constituency has 11 candidates in the fray, with Congress, DMK and CPI among the other parties contesting.&nbsp;

Voting is underway in five Assembly constituencies across West Bengal, Tamil Nadu and Puducherry, along with Assam's Nagaon Lok Sabha seat. The bypolls are being closely watched as a test of political strength ahead of future electoral battles.

Polling began on Tuesday (Oct 6) morning for by-elections to five Assembly constituencies across West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, and Puducherry, along with the Nagaon Lok Sabha seat in Assam. The elections are being closely watched as a test for several ruling and opposition parties following the 2026 Assembly and Lok Sabha elections. Voting is taking place in Nandigram and Rejinagar in West Bengal, Madurantakam and Dharapuram in Tamil Nadu, Thattanchavady in Puducherry and Nagaon in Assam. Counting of votes is scheduled for October 9, with the Election Commission saying the entire election process will be completed by October 11. Also read | CJI Surya Kant says Supreme Court never approved modified Form 6 for SIR West Bengal bypolls: Nandigram, Rejinagar in focus In West Bengal, bypolls are being held in Nandigram and Rejinagar. The Nandigram seat fell vacant after Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari won both Nandigram and Bhabanipur in the 2026 Assembly elections and chose to retain Bhabanipur. The BJP has fielded Hasirani Rath from Nandigram. The Rejinagar seat was vacated after Aam Janata Unnayan Party chief Humayun Kabir, who had also won Nowda, chose to retain the latter constituency. The bypoll has attracted candidates from several parties, including AJUP, BJP, Congress and CPI. The two Bengal seats have emerged as closely watched contests after significant political changes in the state following the Assembly election. Also read | Delhi Police register 3 FIRs over Jantar Mantar protests demanding CEC Gyanesh Kumar's resignation Tamil Nadu bypolls: Madurantakam, Dharapuram contests In Tamil Nadu, voters are casting ballots in the reserved Madurantakam (SC) seat in Chengalpattu district and Dharapuram (SC) in Tiruppur district. The Election Commission said the vacancies followed the resignations of Maragatham Kumaravel and P Sathyabama. Madurantakam has turned into a multi-cornered contest involving TVK's Maragatham Kumaravel, DMK's Paranthaman, AIADMK's Kanitha Sampath, CPI(M)'s Suganthi and NTK's Janakiraman. In Dharapuram, the main candidates include TVK's P Sathyabama, DMK's S Suganya, AIADMK's K Banumathi, CPI's P Lakshmanan and NTK's M Karthika. The contests are also significant because the CPI and CPI(M), which extend support to the TVK-led government, are contesting separately in the bypolls. Nagaon: BJP, Congress, AIUDF in three-way fight The Nagaon Lok Sabha bypoll in Assam is witnessing a three-way contest between the BJP, Congress and AIUDF. The BJP has fielded former IAS officer Debashish Sharma, while Congress has nominated former Batadroba MLA Sibamoni Bora. AIUDF chief Badruddin Ajmal's entry has meanwhile turned the contest into a triangular battle. The seat fell vacant after former Congress MP Pradyut Bordoloi resigned and later joined the BJP. He subsequently won the Dispur Assembly seat in the 2026 Assam elections. Puducherry's Thattanchavady also votes Polling is also underway in the Thattanchavady Assembly constituency in Puducherry. The seat fell vacant after Chief Minister and AINRC leader N Rangasamy, who won both Thattanchavady and Mangalam in the April Assembly election, chose to retain Mangalam. AINRC has fielded former legislator Ashok Anand with NDA backing. The constituency has 11 candidates in the fray, with Congress, DMK and CPI among the other parties contesting.

Voting is underway in five Assembly constituencies across West Bengal, Tamil Nadu and Puducherry, along with Assam's Nagaon Lok Sabha seat.&nbsp;

India bypolls 2026: Voting begins across 5 Assembly seats, Nagaon Lok Sabha constituency

Bypoll Elections 2024: Voting for bypolls for 13 assembly seats across seven states in India began on Wednesday (July 10). The polling started early morning at 7 am and will end at 6 pm.

Bypoll Elections 2024: Voting for bypolls for 13 assembly seats across seven states in India began on Wednesday (July 10). The polling started early morning at 7 am and will end at 6 pm. The counting of votes is scheduled for July 13. Bypolls are declared due to the death or the resignation of elected candidates. Here is a list of seats for which polling has begun: Rupauli (Bihar) Ranaghat Dakshin (West Bengal) Raiganj (West Bengal) Bagdah (West Bengal) Maniktala (West Bengal) Vikravandi (Tamil Nadu) Jalandhar West (Punjab) Amarwara (Madhya Pradesh) Badrinath (Uttarakhand) Manglaur ((Uttarakhand) Dehra (Himachal Pradesh) Hamirpur (Himachal Pradesh) Nalagarh (Himachal Pradesh) West Bengal Polling is being held for four assembly seats in West Bengal. There are about 10 lakh voters across the four assembly constituencies, Ranaghat Dakshin, Raiganj, Bagdah and Maniktala. The Election Commission has deployed security forces to ensure a seamless voting process across the four seats in the state. About 70 security companies have been engaged to provide security across 1,097 polling booths in the state. Also read | Uttar Pradesh tragedy: 18 killed as double-decker bus and milk tanker collide on Lucknow-Agra Expressway Himachal Pradesh Polling has begun for three assembly seats across Himachal Pradesh, Dehra, Hamirpur and Nalagarh. There are a total of 315 polling stations, and a total of 2,59,340 people are eligible to vote for the seats. The three assembly seats in the state have gone to polls due to the resignation of three members, Hoshiyar Singh (Dehra), K L Thakur (Nalagarh) and Ashish Sharma (Hamirpur) from the house on March 22. Uttarakhand Uttarakhand went to polls for two assembly seats today - Badrinath and Manglaur. Polling was held in Manglaur due to the death of sitting BSP MLA Sarwat Karim Ansari last year. While in Badrinath it was held because the sitting congrees MLA Rajendra Bhandari resigned and switched to BJP. Bihar Bypolls in Bihar are being held as sitting MLA Bimla Bharti resigned from Janta Dal United (JDU) and switched to Rashtriya Janta Dal (RJD). The contest for the Ruplai seat is between Kaladhar Mandal of the JDU and RJD's Bimla Bharti. Punjab Voting is ongoing for the Jalandhar West constituency. The state went to polls after the AAP MLA Sheetal Angural left the party and joined the BJP, leaving the seat vacant. The Jalandhar West assembly seat is a battle between Bhagwant Mann, Punjab Chief Minister from AAP and Sheetal Angural from the BJP. Also read | Patanjali halts sale of 14 products across 5,606 franchise outlets after license suspension Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu held bypoll elections due to the death of the current Dravida Munnnetra Kazagham (DMK) MLA N Pughazenthi. The contest for the Vikravandi assembly seat is between three major parties- DMK, Anbumani Ramdoss-led Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK) and Naam Tamilar Katchi (NTK) a part of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA). Madhya Pradesh The Amarwara (ST) assembly seat in Madhya Pradesh went to bypolls after Kamlesh Shah a Congress MLA resigned and joined the BJP. The contest is primarily between Kamlesh Shah of the BJP and Dheeran Shah of the Congress. Amarwara is a tribal-dominated area. There is a possibility that the Gondwana Gantantra Party (GGP) may cut into the vote share of both the Congress and BJP. (With inputs from agencies)

Bypoll 2024: Polling being held for 13 seats across seven states in India

Actor-turned-politician Rajinikanth on Friday said that he is ready to contest the Assembly elections whenever it's announced.

''Whenever it is announced I am ready. I will decide after May 23,'' said Rajinikanth on asked whether he will contest state polls if AIADMK falls short of a majority after assembly bypolls.

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Rajinikanth on being asked if he will contest state polls if AIADMK falls short of majority after assembly bypolls: Whenever it is announced I am ready. I will decide after May 23 <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/TamilNadu?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#TamilNadu</a> <a href="https://t.co/mjfR10xeRg">pic.twitter.com/mjfR10xeRg</a>
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The actor was responding to a question as to whether he will contest the assembly elections in case the AIADMK-BJP alliance government fails to get a majority and assembly gets dissolved after May 23 when results of the Lok Sabha elections along with assembly byelections will be declared.&nbsp;

When asked if Prime Minister Narendra Modi will return to power, he said, "we will know on May 23".

Actor-turned-politician Rajinikanth on Friday said that he is ready to contest the Assembly elections whenever it's announced. ''Whenever it is announced I am ready.

Actor-turned-politician Rajinikanth on Friday said that he is ready to contest the Assembly elections whenever it's announced. ''Whenever it is announced I am ready. I will decide after May 23,'' said Rajinikanth on asked whether he will contest state polls if AIADMK falls short of a majority after assembly bypolls. Rajinikanth on being asked if he will contest state polls if AIADMK falls short of majority after assembly bypolls: Whenever it is announced I am ready. I will decide after May 23 #TamilNadu pic.twitter.com/mjfR10xeRg — ANI (@ANI) April 19, 2019 × The actor was responding to a question as to whether he will contest the assembly elections in case the AIADMK-BJP alliance government fails to get a majority and assembly gets dissolved after May 23 when results of the Lok Sabha elections along with assembly byelections will be declared. When asked if Prime Minister Narendra Modi will return to power, he said, "we will know on May 23".

'I am ready,' says Rajinikanth on contesting Tamil Nadu Assembly polls

Actor-politician Kamal Haasan Wednesday said his party Makkal Needhi Maiam was ready to face the bypolls for 20 assembly constituencies in Tamil Nadu whenever they were held.

"At this point of time, we can say bypolls may be conducted. I do not know whether it will be held definitely. Suppose, if it is conducted, Makkal Needhi Maiam is ready to face it", he said.

Haasan was addressing reporters here on the occasion of his 64th birthday.

Bypolls are due in the 20 constituencies, which have fallen vacant following the Madras High Court last month upholding the disqualification of the 18 AIADMK MLAs who back Amma Makkal Munnetra Kazhagam leader TTV Dhinakaran and in view of demise of two sitting members, including DMK patriarch M Karunanidhi.

Answering a question, Haasan said his basic objective was to facilitate healthy politics.

"When you say healthy politics, it also holds the meaning of being scam free. If we do healthy politics, everyone can strongly hope that all sectors will see growth", he said.

The popular actor said, "I do not make any promises wherever I go. But, I receive it from them (people) instead. They all unanimously promised me that they made a mistake by accepting money for vote and that they will not do that again. I hope they will fulfil it", he said.

He dismissed the allegation of local Congress leader 'Karate' Thiagarajan that his party was acting like a "mouth piece" of BJP.

In his birthday message to his party members and followers released on Sunday, Haasan has slammed "existing political parties and politicians" for viewing welfare as 'alms' and charged that they indulge in corruption as if it is their full-time occupation.

The actor had also exhorted them to take up welfare activities rather than meeting him to wish him on his birthday.&nbsp;

Actor-politician Kamal Haasan Wednesday said his party Makkal Needhi Maiam was ready to face the bypolls for 20 assembly constituencies in Tamil Nadu whenever they were held.

Actor-politician Kamal Haasan Wednesday said his party Makkal Needhi Maiam was ready to face the bypolls for 20 assembly constituencies in Tamil Nadu whenever they were held. "At this point of time, we can say bypolls may be conducted. I do not know whether it will be held definitely. Suppose, if it is conducted, Makkal Needhi Maiam is ready to face it", he said. Haasan was addressing reporters here on the occasion of his 64th birthday. Bypolls are due in the 20 constituencies, which have fallen vacant following the Madras High Court last month upholding the disqualification of the 18 AIADMK MLAs who back Amma Makkal Munnetra Kazhagam leader TTV Dhinakaran and in view of demise of two sitting members, including DMK patriarch M Karunanidhi. Answering a question, Haasan said his basic objective was to facilitate healthy politics. "When you say healthy politics, it also holds the meaning of being scam free. If we do healthy politics, everyone can strongly hope that all sectors will see growth", he said. The popular actor said, "I do not make any promises wherever I go. But, I receive it from them (people) instead. They all unanimously promised me that they made a mistake by accepting money for vote and that they will not do that again. I hope they will fulfil it", he said. He dismissed the allegation of local Congress leader 'Karate' Thiagarajan that his party was acting like a "mouth piece" of BJP. In his birthday message to his party members and followers released on Sunday, Haasan has slammed "existing political parties and politicians" for viewing welfare as 'alms' and charged that they indulge in corruption as if it is their full-time occupation. The actor had also exhorted them to take up welfare activities rather than meeting him to wish him on his birthday.

My party ready to face Tamil Nadu bypolls: Kamal Haasan