Lucknow/Erode: Apart from Delhi assembly elections, bypolls were held Wednesday in UP’s Milkipur and Erode (East) in Tamil Nadu, which recorded more than 65% and 64% voting respectively.
The turnout in Milkipur reserved assembly constituency of Faizabad-Ayodhya was the highest voter participation since its first elections in 1967.
In Erode (East) assembly seat, the turnout was about 10% lower than the bypolls in 2023. But the voter participation is considered high as opposition parties AIADMK and BJP had boycotted the bypolls, leaving the field open to just two main contenders – DMK and NTK.
The Milkipur bypolls were a political grudge match in UP’s Hindutva heartland of Ayodhya, giving BJP a shot at redemption after a shock Lok Sabha defeat in Faizabad just over eight months ago and Samajwadi Party a chance to close the contest.
The bypolls were necessitated by incumbent Awadhesh Prasad vacating the seat after being elected to Parliament from Faizabad, of which Milkipur is an assembly segment. Two-time BJP MP Lallu Singh losing Faizabad to his SP rival was more than just an electoral setback, coming as it did within a few months of Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurating the Ram temple in Ayodhya.
SP has fielded Awadhesh’s son Ajit Prasad in Milkipur against BJP’s Chandra Bhan Paswan, making it a battle of Pasi Dalits in a constituency with a sizeable presence of voters from the community. BSP has opted out of the contest while Congress is backing Samajwadi Party.
Milkipur has over 3.7 lakh registered voters.
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