Polls and procedures: Assembly on goodbye elections, ECI

Results of by-elections in five assembly constituencies – Kadi (SC) and Vishwas in Gujarat, Nilambur in Kerala, Ludhiana West in Punjab and Kaliganj in West Bengal indicate factors to play at local and regional levels. Congress -led United Democratic Front candidate Aryadan Shukath won the Nilambur seat. The PV Anwar, who won as a left -supported independent in 2021, vacated the seat after a spat with the ruling alliance, contested as a Trinmool Congress (TMC) candidate (who was rejected) and then stood as an independent. The seat is in the Wayanad Lok Sabha constituency represented by Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidate performed poorly. The result may affect the voice of campaigning for the Kerala assembly elections to be held next year. The alignment of the relative power of communities and parties in both fronts will be affected by Neelambur results. In Kaliganj constituency in Nadia district, the ruling TMC candidate Alifa Ahmed won by a margin of over 50,000 votes. His father’s death was sub-polls. The day of counting of a child in a raw bombings was a sign of a continuous and disturbing role of violence in the state. The assembly elections in West Bengal will be held next year.

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) journey in Visvadar and Ludhiana West is important for a party that lost power in its original stronghold in Delhi in February. Its MLA in Visvadar blamed the BJP, and a fresh mandate helps AAP to maintain its stake in state politics. Its former state president Gopal Italia is the winner. Former AAP member Parliament member and industrialist Sanjeev Arora won the Ludhiana West seat in a state IT rules. The BJP retained the kadhi. Sub-poles were also notable for new initiatives by the Election Commission (ECI) of India to strengthen the integrity of the electoral process and make it more accessible. These include mobile deposit facility for voters at all polling stations, the process of sharing advanced voter voting, resulting in an estimated polling trends rapidly updated, and most importantly, webcasting at 100% polling stations. There are issues of disputes over heavy voting in sensitive booths in the concluding hours of voting and transparency related to video records of booth activities, and ECI should not only continue to take active measures to be fair, but also be seen.