Assam by-elections: Polling on to decide fate of 20 candidates

Guwahati: People queued up in large numbers across 830 polling stations to cast their votes in the by-elections held at four constituencies of Assam on Monday.

A total of 6,77,367 voters are exercising their franchise at their respective polling stations to decide the fate of 20 candidates who are in the fray, contesting for the by-elections in Ratabari, Sonari, Rangapara and Jania assembly constituencies of Assam.

Meanwhile, a total of 1, 70, 340 voters will cast their votes across 202 polling stations in Assam’s Sonari constituency to decide the fate of contesting Bharatiya Janata Party’s candidate Nabanita Handique and Congress candidate Sushil Kumar Suri. While BJP’s contestant Handique casts her franchise at 116 number polling station at Sapekhati High school, Congress’s Suri casts his vote at 99 number polling station at Rangapathar Primary school of the constituency.

In Rangapara constituency of the state, a total of five candidates are in fray namely, Rajen Bortakur of BJP, Kartik Kurmi of Congress, Royal Soreng of CPI(M), Sanjit Rajbangshi of SUCI (Communist) and Arup Kumar Chowdhury of the Bharatiya Gana Parishad.

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While in Ratabari constituency, four candidates are in the arena but the main fight is likely to be witnessed between BJP’s Bijoy Malakar and Congress’s Keshab Prasad Rajak. Meanwhile, Birendra Ravidas (SUCI-Communist) and Parikhit Roy (Independent) are also in the fray.

Interestingly, Jania assembly constituency has the highest number of contesting candidates with a total of nine contestants and the fight is likely to be triangular among BJP’s Towfiqur Rahman, Congress’s Samsul Hoque and Rafiqul Islam of AIUDF party.

By-polls to the four constituencies of Assam were necessitated after sitting BJP MLAs and ministers Pallab Lochan Das from Rangapara, Tapan Gogoi from Sonari along with Deputy Speaker Kripanath Mallah of Ratabari and Congress MLA Abdul Khaleque from Jania were recently elected to the Lok Sabha.

Meanwhile, security has been beefed up across all the constituencies of the state where the by-polls are being held