Key Points

The UDF's Aryadan Shoukath secured a decisive victory in the Nilambur by-election, defeating LDF's M Swaraj by 11,077 votes. Congress claims the win reflects growing discontent with Kerala's Pinarayi Vijayan government. Meanwhile, AAP leads in Gujarat's Visavadar seat, signaling a potential resurgence. TMC also maintains a strong lead in West Bengal's Kaliganj bypoll.

Key Points: UDF's Aryadan Shoukath Wins Nilambur By-Election Defeating LDF's Swaraj

  • UDF wins Nilambur by-election by 11,077 votes
  • Congress cites rising anti-incumbency against LDF
  • AAP leads in Gujarat's Visavadar bypoll
  • TMC ahead in West Bengal's Kaliganj seat
3 min read

UDF's Aryadan Shoukath defeats LDF's M Swaraj by 11,077 votes in Nilambur By-Election

Congress-led UDF secures Nilambur by-election with 11,077-vote margin, dealing a blow to Kerala's LDF government amid rising anti-incumbency.

"Successive bypoll wins prove anti-incumbency against Pinarayi Vijayan government is gaining momentum – Kerala Congress"

New Delhi, June 23

In a significant blow to the Pinarayi Vijayan-led LDF government in Kerala, UDF candidate Aryadan Shoukath of Congress defeated LDF's M Swaraj of CPI(M) by a large margin of 11,077 votes in the Nilambur assembly by-election. As per the Election Commission website, Shoukath had secured 77737 votes, a lead of 11077 votes from M Swaraj of the CPM after 19 rounds of counting.

The bypoll for the Nilambur seat was necessitated after the resignation of Left Democratic Front independent legislator PV Anvar, who later joined the All India Trinamool Congress (TMC) after his acrimonious break-up with the ruling alliance.

In its official statement, Congress in Kerala said, "Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) has won the Nilambur assembly constituency, a sitting seat of the ruling CPM combine, by a huge margin of over 11,000 votes. Big congrats to Aryadan Shoukath and the entire Congress-UDF team that worked relentlessly for this shining victory. Successive bypoll wins and a clean sweep in the parliament elections by the Congress and UDF have proved beyond doubt that the anti-incumbency sentiment against the Pinarayi Vijayan government is gaining momentum by the day. Now the anger of the people has reached its peak. The government cannot escape the heat or continue to live in denial, hiding behind the multi-crore PR machinery."

In Gujarat's Visavadar Assembly by-election, AAP's Gopal Italia leads with 17,554 votes over BJP's Kirit Patel after 21 rounds. The Visavadar seat fell vacant after Bhayani Bhupendrabhai Gandubhai resigned.

In a post on X, AAP Gujarat expressed their gratitude, stating, "Many thanks to the people of Visavadar, Bhensan and Junagadh villages for choosing the politics of work of Aam Aadmi Party"

https://x.com/AAPGujarat/status/1937049334799118538

Delhi AAP president Saurabh Bharadwaj called it a "massive victory" and a "terrific bounce back," emphasising that despite setbacks, AAP's influence remains strong in key regions.

Speaking to ANI, Saurabh Bharadwaj said, "This is a massive victory for AAP. Political analysts were saying that AAP would finish as a party. But after the loss in Delhi, AAP is winning Ludhiana West (Assembly by-elections) and we are also winning a by-election in AAP's stronghold of Gujarat by a huge margin. I think this is a major victory. A few people used to say that Arvind Kejriwal would be sidelined in national politics; this is a terrific bounce back."

In the Ludhiana West (Punjab) Assembly by-election, AAP's Sanjeev Arora continues to lead Congress's Bharat Bhushan Ashu by 7504 votes after 11 rounds of counting. BJP's Jiwan Gupta is trailing in third position.

The bypoll was necessitated after AAP MLA Gurpreet Gogi died of a self-inflicted bullet injury in January this year.

In the Kaliganj by-election in West Bengal, TMC's Alifa Ahmed continues to lead BJP's Ashish Ghosh by 26,494 votes after the 10th round of counting. Congress candidate Kabil Uddin Shaikh is currently in third place. The by-poll was held following the death of TMC leader Nasiruddin Ahmed.

In Gujarat's Kadi Assembly by-election, BJP's Rajendra Chavda continues his lead over Congress's Ramesh Chavda; currently leading by a margin of 37,693 votes after 18 rounds of counting. AAP's Jagdish Chavda is trailing in a distant third position.

The Kadi bye-election was necessitated following the death of sitting MLA Karsanbhai Punjabhai Solanki in February this year.

- ANI

Share this article:

Reader Comments

R
Rajesh K.
This is a clear message from Kerala voters against LDF's arrogance! Pinarayi government's high-handedness is finally being rejected. UDF's consecutive wins show people want change. Congress should capitalize on this momentum for 2026 assembly elections. 👏
P
Priya M.
Interesting to see AAP performing well in Gujarat while Congress dominates Kerala. Indian politics is becoming more regionalized. But I wonder - is this really about development or just anti-incumbency? The common man suffers when parties focus only on elections rather than governance.
S
Suresh V.
As a Malayali, I'm happy to see LDF getting a reality check. But Congress shouldn't celebrate too much - they won mainly because of Aryadan family's legacy in Nilambur. The real test will be in other constituencies. LDF still has strong grassroots presence in many areas.
A
Ananya G.
The margin is surprising! 11,000 votes is huge for Kerala politics where elections are usually neck-to-neck. Shows how PV Anvar's exit damaged LDF. But I hope all parties now focus on Nilambur's development rather than just political one-upmanship. #KeralaNeedsDevelopment
M
Manoj T.
While Congress celebrates in Kerala, AAP's performance in Gujarat is the real story! Winning against BJP in Modi's home state shows people are looking for alternatives. But AAP needs to prove it can sustain beyond bypolls. National parties shouldn't take them lightly anymore.
K
Kavita R.
One election doesn't make a trend, but three things are clear: 1) LDF's invincibility is broken 2) Congress still has base in Kerala 3) AAP is expanding beyond Delhi. Indian democracy is vibrant but I wish parties would focus more on women's issues in their campaigns.

We welcome thoughtful discussions from our readers. Please keep comments respectful and on-topic.

Leave a Comment

Minimum 50 characters 0/50