Bypoll Results: TVK Leads in Both Seats in Tamil Nadu; AINRC's Ashok Anand Wins in Puducherry

It is the result day for five Assembly seats and one Lok Sabha seat across West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Puducherry and Assam, after polling on October 6. Postal ballots are counted first, followed by EVM votes, with results expected through the day.

AINRC CANDIDATE WINS PUDUCHERRY SEAT

All India NR Congress candidate Ashok Anand on Friday won the Thattanchavady Assembly constituency by-election in Puducherry by a margin of 8,482 votes, according to the Election Commission of India.

Anand secured 13,358 votes, while Indian National Congress candidate E Vinayagam received 4,876 votes. Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) candidate K Sethu finished third with 2,664 votes.

In Puducherry, the by-election was held in Thattanchavady after Chief Minister and All India NR Congress chief N Rangasamy resigned from the seat. Rangasamy had won from both Thattanchavady and Mangalam in the Assembly elections but chose to retain Mangalam.

TVK leads in Madurantakam, Dharapuram bypolls

Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) candidate K Maragatham Kumaravel was leading in the Madurantakam Assembly constituency by-election by 8,160 votes after the sixth round of counting.

According to the Election Commission of India, Maragatham Kumaravel secured 23,884 votes, while Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) candidate I Paranthamen received 15,724 votes.

All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) candidate S. Kanithasampath was in third place with 14,065 votes.

In the Dharapuram by-election, Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) candidate P Sathyabama was leading by 6,420 votes after the 12th round of counting.

According to the ECI, Sathyabama secured 34,987 votes, while Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) candidate S. Suganya received 28,567 votes. All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) candidate K Banumathi was in third place with 25,307 votes.

TVK supporters celebrated as the party's candidates continued to lead in both Madurantakam and Dharapuram Assembly bypolls

TVK MLA Thiagarajan burst crackers and celebrated outside the vote counting centre in Chengalpattu.

Meanwhile, TVK supporters also celebrated at the party office in Panaiyur, Chennai.

In Tamil Nadu, bypolls are being held in the Madurantakam (SC) constituency in Chengalpattu district and Dharapuram (SC) in Tiruppur district. The two seats fell vacant following the resignations of Maragatham Kumaravel and P Sathyabama. (ANI)

WEST BENGAL: ADHIKARI'S HOME TURF

Nandigram is the marquee contest. It fell vacant after Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari, who won both Nandigram and Bhabanipur in the 2026 Assembly election, chose to retain Bhabanipur. Nandigram is the seat tied to his political rise, and the contest is being watched as a gauge of the BJP's position in a constituency closely associated with his career.

The BJP has fielded Hasirani Rath. Her son, Chandranath Rath, a former aide to Adhikari, was shot dead in May.

The opposition side is split. Congress's Milan Pradhan is backed by the TMC after its nominee withdrew. A rival TMC faction led by Ritabrata Banerjee has fielded Mohammad Etesamul Haque, and the CPI has fielded Shantigopal Giri.

The Congress-TMC arrangement is notable because the two parties are not formal allies in this seat.

Nandigram and Rejinagar recorded turnouts of 80.89% and 80%. The polling was shadowed by Humayun Kabir's detention, and the Congress has demanded repolling in both seats over alleged intimidation. Congress leaders alleged voter intimidation, booth capturing, proxy voting and EVM malfunction in Nandigram.

Rejinagar was vacated by AJUP chief Humayun Kabir, who retained Nowda. His son, Golam Nabi Azad, is the AJUP candidate against BJP's Sakharav Sarkar, TMC's Rabiul Alam Chowdhury, a rival TMC faction's Safiuzzaman Sheikh, Congress's Mohammad Abdullahil Kafi and CPI(M)'s Syed Asad Ali.

Kabir was himself pulled into a police vehicle on polling day. The Murshidabad SP said he was neither a candidate nor an authorised election agent. The seat is a contest for minority votes, and a split field helps the BJP.

ASSAM: NAGAON, A CONGRESS SEAT UP FOR GRABS

The Nagaon Lok Sabha seat, which saw 76.19% turnout, fell vacant when Congress MP Pradyut Bordoloi resigned and joined the BJP. He later won the Dispur Assembly seat in the 2026 Assam election.

The contest features BJP's Debashish Sharma, Congress's former MLA Sibamoni Bora and AIUDF chief Badruddin Ajmal. There are 15 candidates, and the Congress held the seat in 2019 and 2024.

The split between the Congress and the AIUDF in a seat with a large minority vote is what the BJP needs to flip it. A BJP win would take a seat from the Congress's Lok Sabha tally. It would not change the national arithmetic, but it would be a symbolic win for the party over a defector's old seat.

With inputs from ANI