The contests span two assembly seats in West Bengal, one Lok Sabha seat in Assam, two reserved assembly constituencies in Tamil Nadu and one assembly seat in Puducherry. Polling in most of the seats will continue until 6 pm, while voting in Assam’s Nagaon Lok Sabha constituency will end at 5 pm.
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The results, to be announced on October 9, are not expected to alter the balance of power but carry political significance for ruling parties and opposition groups seeking an early read on voter sentiment.
West Bengal: Nandigram, Rejinagar in focus
In West Bengal, polling is under way in Nandigram and Rejinagar assembly constituencies, with 71 companies of central forces deployed to maintain security.
Nandigram, in Purba Medinipur district, is the more symbolically charged of the two contests. The seat was at the centre of Mamata Banerjee‘s anti-land acquisition movement, which helped pave the way for the Trinamool Congress’s rise to power in 2011. It was also where BJP’s Suvendu Adhikari defeated Banerjee in the 2021 assembly election.
Adhikari, now chief minister, won Nandigram again in the 2026 assembly election but retained Bhabanipur, necessitating the bypoll.The BJP has fielded Hasirani Rath, mother of Chandranath Rath, a former aide of Adhikari who was shot dead on May 6, two days after the BJP won the assembly elections. Her candidature has added an emotional dimension to the contest.
The Mamata Banerjee-led TMC faction’s nominee, Sanchita Pradhan Dey, withdrew her name after meeting Adhikari. Banerjee, left without a candidate, subsequently backed Congress nominee Milan Pradhan, describing the move as an effort to strengthen the INDIA bloc.
Pradhan was arrested in old cases linked to the 2007 Nandigram land-acquisition agitation but later secured interim bail and returned to campaign.
A rival TMC faction led by Bengal Leader of Opposition Ritabrata Banerjee has fielded Mohammad Eteshamul Haque under the envelope symbol and a separate temporary party identity. The CPI has nominated Santigopal Giri.
Rejinagar in Murshidabad presents a different political equation. The seat fell vacant after Humayun Kabir, who won both Rejinagar and Nowda in the 2026 assembly election, retained Nowda. His Aam Janata Unnayan Party has fielded his son, Golam Nabi Azad.
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The contest also features BJP nominee Sakharav Sarkar, former Murshidabad district president; Mamata-led TMC candidate Rabiul Alam Chowdhury; rival TMC candidate Safiuzzaman Sheikh; Congress nominee Mohammad Abdullahil Kafi; and CPI(M)’s Syed Asad Ali.
Rejinagar has 2.57 lakh electors and 315 polling stations, while Nandigram has 2.67 lakh voters and 323 polling stations.
Assam: Nagaon sees BJP-Congress-AIUDF contest
In Assam, polling began at 7 am in the Nagaon Lok Sabha constituency, where the BJP, Congress and AIUDF are locked in a triangular contest.
Voters, mostly women, were seen queuing outside polling stations from early morning.
The bypoll was necessitated after Congress MP Pradyut Bordoloi resigned and subsequently contested the assembly elections from Dispur on a BJP ticket.
The result will not affect the balance of power in Parliament, but the contest carries significance for the three major parties. The BJP is seeking to expand its base in the Muslim-majority constituency, while the Congress is looking to retain its minority support base.
The AIUDF is fighting to maintain its influence after being reduced to two MLAs from 16 in the April assembly election.
Fifteen candidates are in the fray, with the main contest expected to be among BJP’s Devashish Sharma, an ex-IAS officer; former Congress MLA Sibamoni Bora; and AIUDF chief Badruddin Ajmal.
The district administration has identified 624 polling stations as sensitive. A total of 19.05 lakh voters, including 9.43 lakh women and 50 third-gender electors, are eligible to vote across 2,312 polling stations, including five auxiliary booths.
Tamil Nadu: Madurantakam, Dharapuram go to polls
In Tamil Nadu, voting began in the assembly constituencies of Madurantakam in Chengalpet district and Dharapuram in Tiruppur district.
People began gathering outside polling stations well before voting started, while elaborate security and surveillance arrangements were put in place with personnel from the state and Central Armed Police Forces deployed.
Also Read: Tamil Nadu bypolls 2026: Vijay, Stalin and Palaniswami launch campaign in Madurantakam, Dharapuram
The bypolls were necessitated after then AIADMK MLAs K Maragatham Kumaravel and P Satyabama resigned from Madurantakam and Dharapuram respectively before joining the ruling TVK. Both have been re-nominated.
The DMK and AIADMK are contesting both seats.
Puducherry: Thattanchavady tests NDA government
In Puducherry, polling began at 7 am in the Thattanchavady assembly constituency, with voters gathering at polling stations before the start of voting.
The bypoll is being seen as a test of the popularity of the four-month-old NDA government led by Chief Minister N Rangasamy, whose resignation from the seat necessitated the electoral exercise.
Polling will continue until 6 pm. Although 11 candidates are in the fray, the contest is being viewed as a three-cornered battle between the ruling AINRC-led NDA, Congress and its former ally DMK.
With security arrangements in place across the constituencies and polling under way, the focus now shifts to turnout and voter preferences before the results are declared on October 9.
