Voting for key bypolls across six states ends

Voting for key bypolls to seven assembly constituencies across six states concluded amid tight security arrangements on Tuesday. This is the first face-off between the Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) and the Opposition's newly formed Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) ahead of assembly elections to five states later this year and the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

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The bypolls were held at Dumri in Jharkhand, Puthuppally in Kerala, Boxanagar and Dhanpur in Tripura, Bageshwar in Uttarakhand, Ghosi in Uttar Pradesh, and Dhupguri in West Bengal. The counting of all seven seats will be conducted on September 8.

In Ghosi seat of Uttar Pradesh, INDIA constituents are putting up a united front with the Congress and Left extending support to Samajwadi Party candidate Sudhakar Singh against the BJP's Dara Singh Chauhan. Chauhan recently crossed over from the SP to the BJP, necessitating the bypoll.

Till 6pm, Ghosi recorded 50.30% voter turnout.

While the polling concluded peacefully, the Akhilesh Yadav-led SP wrote to the Election Commission alleging that Muslim voters in booth number 147 were not allowed to vote by the polling officer. The letter claimed that when voters resisted, the police and polling officials "at the behest of the ruling BJP are using abusive words to drive them away".