THE UP BYPOLLS

The Chief Minister knows that just as the Lok Sabha polls were crucial for Modi, this round of bypolls is crucial for him. He is campaigning hard (some would say harder than what he did in the Lok Sabha) and sensing the stakes, Akhilesh Yadav is also leading the campaign from the front.

- PRIYA SAHGAL

Along with elections in the states of Maharashtra and Jharkhand, there are also some bypolls that will take place. It would be especially interesting to see which way the state of Uttar Pradesh would vote given the way the vote fell in the recent Lok Sabha.

If the Samajwadi Party Chief Akhilesh Yadav is able to keep the Lok Sabha momentum and wrest a large chunk of the 9 seats that are going in for the bypolls, then it would be a huge shot in the arm for the anti-BJP alliance. In particular, it would give credibility to the rumours doing the rounds that the BJP is planning a change of guard at the state level.