Skip to main content

Assembly, Lok Sabha bypolls: Why can't party leaderships pick up fresh candidates?

By Nava Thakuria* 
As India's billion plus populace are watching an initiative under ‘one nation, one election’ policy by the Union  government in New Delhi proposing to go for simultaneous elections for Lok Sabha, State legislative assemblies and local government bodies across the country with an aim to reduce the electoral expenditure, the recent by-polls narrated a different story. The  special elections, conducted for 48 legislative assembly constituencies in 14 States (along with two Parliamentary constituencies in Kerala and Maharashtra) divulged an important fact that no less than 41 assembly seats needed  the by-polls as those were vacated by the respective legislators after they were elected to the lower house of Indian Parliament.
One may wonder how all these members of State legislative assemblies turned Parliamentarians became so essential for the concerned political parties to achieve electoral successes in the last general elections  that embraced over 968 million electorates. Was it not possible for the party leaderships to pick up fresh candidates with a higher percentage of winnability (and allowing the MLAs to complete their terms) for the Parliamentary polls? Should it have been a wise practice for them to help the millions of direct & indirect taxpayers in saving a huge volume of electoral expenditure to fill the space created by those newly elected members of  18th Lok Sabha!
According to the Election Commission of India (ECI), except seven assembly constituencies (two each in Rajasthan  and Sikkim, one each in Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Madhya Pradesh) all other seats became vacant as their representatives shifted their working space to New Delhi after Parliamentary electoral successes. Rajasthan reported the death of two MLAs in  Salumber and Ramgarh seats, where another legislator passed away in Uttarakhand’s Kedarnath constituency. Disqualification of a legislator necessitated the by-polls in Sishamau (Uttar Pradesh). In Sikkim, by-polls became necessary as its government chief  Prem Singh Tamang vacated one seat to continue with Rhenock constituency. Amazingly, Namchi-Singhithang seat was deserted by CM’s wife Krishna Kumari Rai (reasons best known to her only) soon after taking the oath. Finally Vijaypur (Madhya Pradesh) legislator changed his party affiliation ensuring an obligatory resignation.
Out of nine assembly constituencies of Uttar Pradesh, which went to by-polls recently, eight seats were vacated by the legislators to become MPs. Samajwadi Party (SP) chief, Akhilesh Yadav marched to Lok Sabha leaving Karhal seat vacant. Another SP leader Ziaur Rehman left the Kundarki seat after successful LS elections. Katehari seat was deserted by  SP leader Lalji Verma and  Chandan Chauhan (RLD) left Meerapur seat.  Similarly,  Ghaziabad seat was abandoned by Atul Garg (Bharatiya Janata Party) whereas Vinod Kumar Bind left  Majhawan seat. BJP legislator Anoop Pradhan Balmiki vacated Khair and Praveen Patel (BJP) left the Phulpur seat.
In Rajasthan, five assembly seats were abandoned by sitting legislators to fight LS elections successfully and thus compelled  the ECI to conduct by-polls. Jhunjhunu assembly seat was vacated by Brijendra Singh Ola (Indian National Congress) after LS polls. Another Congress legislator Harish Chandra Meena  vacated the Deoli-Uniara seat  and  Murari Lal Meena left the Dausa seat. RLP chief Hanuman Beniwal left Khinwsar seat and  Raj Kumar Roat (BAP) vacated Chorasi.
By-polls in all six constituencies of  West Bengal, where the assembly elections are due within two years, became necessary as the respective legislators successfully participated in the 2024 national elections. Trinamool Congress representative Jagdish Chandra Basunia vacated Sitai seat and  Manoj Tigga (BJP) left Madarihat seat. Partha Bhowmick (TMC) vacated the Naihati seat and another TMC legislator Sk Nurul Islam abandoned Haroa seat. June Maliah (TMC) left Medinipur seat and another party man Arup Chakraborty vacated the Taldangra seat. Punjab also witnessed four sitting MLAs joining the Lok Sabha. Gidderbaha seat was vacated by Congress legislator  Raja Warring and another Congress leader Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa abandoned the Dera Baba Nanak seat. Raj Kumar Chabbewal (AAP) left Chabbewal  and another AAP leader Gurmeet Singh Meet Hayer vacated the Barnala seat. 
Similarly, Bihar that is awaiting assembly elections by next year  embraced by-polls to fill up four assembly seats as the legislators shifted their working space to New Delhi.  Sudama Prasad (CPI-ML-L) vacated Tarari  seat  and  Sudhakar Singh (Rashtriya Janata Dal) left  Ramgarh seat. Similarly, Imamganj seat was abandoned by Jitan Ram Manjhi (HAM-Secular) and Belganj seat was vacated by RJD’s Surendra Prasad Yadav.
Three assembly seats in Karnataka were also vacated by sitting MLAs inviting the by-polls. Basavaraj Bommai (BJP) left Shiggaon seat, whereas E Tukaram (INC) vacated Sandur seat. Channapatna seat was relinquished by HD Kumaraswamy (JD-S). Two seats in Kerala fell vacant as both the legislators participated fruitfully in LS polls. Congress leader Shafi Parambil vacated Palakkad seat and K Radhakrishnan (CPM) left  Chelakkara seat. In Madhya Pradesh, former chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan (BJP) vacated Budhni seat. Raipur City South assembly constituency of Chhattisgarh was vacated by Brijmohan Agrawal (BJP).  Vav assembly seat of  Gujarat was left by Geniben Nagaji Thakor (INC).
Five  seats of Assam, where  assembly elections are due in 2026, along with one assembly constituency of Meghalaya also went for by-polls as all the legislators were elected to Lok Sabha. Samaguri seat was vacated by Congress legislator Rakibul Hussain, whereas BJP’s Parimal Suklabaidya left Dholai seat. Another BJP legislator  Ranjit Dutta abandoned the Behali seat and Sidli  seat was vacated by Jayanta Basumatary (United Peoples’ Party-Liberal). Asom Gana Parishad legislator Phani Bhusan Choudhury vacated the Bongaigaon seat. Meghalaya’s Gambegre assembly constituency was deserted by Congress leader Saleng A Sangma.
Should not these statistics indicate clearly that the recent by-polls could have been limited to less than seven assembly constituencies if the political parties (irrespective of their ideologies or position in the governments) behaved little responsively? When will the electorates of India come above their loyalty, affiliation or inclination  to any political party and raise voices for a colossal electoral reform in the largest democracy on Earth?
---
*Senior journalist 

Comments

Post a Comment

TRENDING

King Corona and his descendents: How long will the Dynasty last?

By Dr Amitav Banerjee, MD*  “Corona ” is in the media once again, precipitating a déjà-vu feeling and some amount of panic among the people. Among viruses and microorganisms King Corona and its descendents enjoy Royalty Status. "What's in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet." This classic quote from Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet is well known. But does it hold well in current times? The events during the past five years challenge the Bard's view.
Post a Comment
Read more

The WHO Pandemic Agreement: Why India should reconsider its stance

By Dr Amitav Banerjee, MD*  For more than the past three years, the WHO has been trying its best to push the Pandemic Treaty and amendments to the International Health Regulations in unholy haste, instead of conducting a proper appraisal of the impact of the measures taken during the Covid-19 pandemic—a routine exercise after any pandemic to guide future strategies.  This raises questions about whether the WHO, under China’s influence, is trying to conceal its acts of omission and commission during the pandemic, including obstructing investigations into the origins of SARS-CoV-2. The WHO recently faced a setback when the USA decided to cut all ties with the organization. 
Post a Comment
Read more

Old bias, new excuses: How western media misrepresents India’s anti-terror strikes

By Gajanan Khergamker  The recent Indian military strikes on Pakistan, dubbed Operation Sindoor, have sparked a storm of international media coverage. Several prominent outlets have portrayed India as the aggressor in the escalating conflict, raising concerns over biased reporting. This commentary critiques coverage by foreign media outlets such as The New York Times , Reuters, BBC, and CNN, which have often been accused of framing India’s actions as escalatory while downplaying or omitting critical context regarding Pakistan’s role in fostering terrorism. By examining historical patterns and current geopolitical dynamics, this analysis highlights the recurring selective framing, omission of evidence, and a tendency to favor narratives aligned with Western geopolitical interests over factual nuance.
Post a Comment
Read more

India’s 2021 excess deaths: was it the virus — or the containment frenzy?

By Bhaskaran Raman* Tyagu (name changed), a vegetable vendor recalls of his brother’s death in 2021. The victim had a normal fever, but was forcibly taken away to the hospital saying that it was Covid. He had been coerced into taking the Covid-19 “vaccines” by that time. After 10 days in hospital, he died. There was no proper information during his hospital stay, and no one was allowed to visit, saying that visitors could also get Covid.
Post a Comment
Read more

Killed in Chhattisgarh encounter, this Maoist leader suffered from overreliance on military actions

By Harsh Thakor*  Namballa Keshava Rao, also known as Basav Raj, General Secretary of the banned CPI (Maoist), was killed in an encounter in which 27 Maoist cadre died during a security operation in the Abujhmad forest, Narayanpur district, Chhattisgarh, on the morning of May 21. This marks the first time in the history of the CPI (Maoist) that its General Secretary has been killed in an encounter. Rao is the second General Secretary after Charu Mazumdar to be killed by security forces.
Post a Comment
Read more

Environmental report raises alarm: Sabarmati one of four rivers with nonylphenol contamination

By Rajiv Shah  A new report by  Toxics Link , an Indian environmental research and advocacy organisation based in New Delhi, in collaboration with the  Environmental Defense Fund , a global non-profit headquartered in New York, has raised the alarm that Sabarmati is one of five rivers across India found to contain unacceptable levels of nonylphenol (NP), a chemical linked to "exposure to carcinogenic outcomes, including prostate cancer in men and breast cancer in women."
Post a Comment
Read more

Crying air, water, and earth: A call to conserve our dying natural resources

By Dr. Gurinder Kaur*  Air, water, and earth—these natural resources are essential for the survival of all living beings, including humans, animals, and plants. Life in any form is impossible without them. These are precious gifts of nature to humankind. However, in the pursuit of economic growth, modern humans have severely polluted these valuable resources in an attempt to satisfy their greed.
Post a Comment
Read more

Ninety years of the socialist movement in India: What's the path head

By Dr. Sunilam*  We are all aware of what the leaders active in the socialist movement have accomplished over the past 90 years. We are also well-acquainted with the sacrifices made by leaders and workers during the freedom struggle and the socialist movement. For the past 45 years, since I became interested in joining the socialist movement as an activist, I have been keen on understanding and analyzing its history. Inspired by 101-year-old freedom fighter Dr. G.G. Parikh and in collaboration with comrades from the Socialist Samagam, I have actively participated in organizing events to mark the 82nd, 85th, and now the 90th anniversaries of the socialist movement.
Post a Comment
Read more