AAP Bypoll Bonanza, Contradictory Results

New Delhi, June 23, 2025:

The most recent assembly by elections in India, which took place on June 19 across five constituencies in four states- Gujarat, Kerala, West Bengal, and Punjab, produced a wide range of results. Today's counting gave a glimpse of the changing dynamics of the national and regional parties. 

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), which led the field, won two important seats. AAP's Rajya Sabha MP Sanjeev Arora easily won the seat in Punjab's Ludhiana West, defeating Congressman Bharat Bhushan Ashu by a margin of 10,637 votes, with 39.02% of the vote to Ashu's 27.22%. In anticipation of the 2027 state assembly elections, Arora's victory is being presented as a "morale booster" for the AAP.

In Gujarat, Gopal Italia successfully defended the seat with a sizable margin of votes, and the party was able to hold onto Visavadar. In Kadi, Gujarat, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) won. The BJP's popularity in the area was confirmed when Rajendra Chavda defeated the Congress candidate by a resounding margin of 39,452 votes. 

The Left Democratic Front suffered a setback in Kerala when the Indian National Congress won the Nilambur seat. The victory of Aryadan Shoukath of the United Democratic Front, which is led by Congress, shows that the state still supports Congress.

The Trinamool Congress (TMC) won Kaliganj, West Bengal, by a landslide. With more than 50,000 votes, Alifa Ahmed won the seat, solidifying the TMC's hold on power in the area. 

Arvind Kejriwal, the national convenor of the AAP, called the results the "semi final to 2027" and characterized the two victories in Punjab and Gujarat as "a clear rejection of both BJP and Congress." These outcomes highlight a fierce political struggle: the TMC maintains its lead in West Bengal, the Congress seeks sanctuary in Kerala, the BJP expands its base in Gujarat, and the AAP is establishing itself outside of Delhi. 

Ahead of the upcoming assembly and general elections, analysts see this as a gauge of public sentiment.