The Mokama (Bihar) bypoll on Thursday has developed into a battle between competing bahubalis, with the wives of two powerful men also involved. A third strongman has thrown his support behind one of the two to enliven the contest. As a result of RJD MLA Anant Singh's disqualification due to his conviction in an Arms Act case, the seat became vacant. Neelam Devi, Anant's wife, is running as the RJD candidate in his place.
BJP's Sonam Devi, the wife of another local strongman named Lalan Singh, is running against Neelam Devi. Sonam Devi also has the support of a former Mokama MLA and still another strongman named Surajbhan Singh. In addition to the relative influence of Anant, Surajbhan, and Lalan Singh, not to mention the combined political influence of the seven-party grand alliance against the lone saffron party, there are other elements that the RJD hopes to capitalise on.
The strength of the ruling alliance will be put to the test on November 3 in the byelections for the Mokama and Gopalganj assembly seats, which come three months after CM Nitish Kumar formed the grand alliance government after ousting the BJP. Due to an injury, Nitish was unable to participate in the campaign but urged supporters of Neelam Devi in a video message. Tejashwi Yadav, the deputy CM and probable RJD heir, on the other hand, took the initiative and spoke at multiple rallies.
Gopalganj (Bihar): A by-election was required as sitting BJP MLA Subhash Singh passed away. In order to oust Mohan Prasad Gupta of the RJD, the BJP has been relying on the sympathy factor for its nominee and Subhash's widow Kusum Devi. Tejashwi Yadav has made a significant point of reminding voters that Gopalganj is his home district. Indira Devi, the wife of Tejashwi's opponent and maternal uncle Sadhu Yadav, is running on a BSP ticket to worsen the situation for Tejashwi. Chirag Paswan, the leader of the Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas), has campaigned for BJP candidates in Mokama and Gopalganj.
Andheri (East): The Shiv Sena faction led by Uddhav Thackeray fielded the wife of its late MLA Ramesh Latke from the constituency, forcing the BJP to withdraw from the campaign. In the first election since the Shiv Sena recently split due to a rebellion by Eknath Shinde, who took over as chief minister of Maharashtra in lieu of Thackeray, Rutuja Latke is predicted to win with ease.
Gola Gorakhnath (UP): After BJP MLA Arvind Giri passed away on September 6, the seat became vacant. It is a direct contest between the BJP and the Samajwadi Party because the BSP and the Congress are keeping away from the byelections. Aman Giri, the son of Arvind Giri, is running for the BJP, whereas Vinay Tiwari, a former Gola MLA, is running for the SP. The BJP has not taken the election lightly and has sent up to 40 prominent campaigners, including all of the top UP cabinet ministers and party office-bearers, in an effort to win sympathy votes. During his final campaign stop on Monday, Yogi Adityanath, the chief minister of Uttar Pradesh, pledged to pay back cane debts and build a corridor called Chhoti Kashi on the lines of Kashi Vishwanath and medical college.
Adampur (Haryana): The grandson of former chief minister Bhajan Lal is one of 22 candidates running in Adampur in the Hisar district of Haryana, where chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar has been actively campaigning. After Kuldeep Bishnoi, the younger son of Bhajan Lal, resigned as the MLA for the seat and switched from the Congress to the BJP in August, bypolls were necessitated. The byelections are being run by Bhavya Bishnoi, a BJP candidate. Aam Aadmi Party, Indian National Lok Dal, BJP, and Congress are some of the major parties contesting in the byelections.
Dhamnagar (Odisha): Out of the five candidates, Abanti Das is the only female and is running on behalf of the BJD. The byelection was required due to the passing of BJP MLA Bishnu Charan Sethi. In an effort to gain sympathy votes, the saffron party has put Sethi's son Suryabanshi Suraj on the ballot. Naveen Patnaik, the chief minister of Odisha, promised to finish five years of work in 18 months during a virtual address to voters in Dhamnagar on Monday. The BJD's official candidate is up against a rebel because Rajendra Das, a former MLA, is running as an Independent.
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