The BJP on Friday won the Nandigram and Rejinagar Assembly by-elections in West Bengal, defeating its nearest rivals by margins of 1,22,753 and 75,816 votes, respectively, according to the Election Commission.
In Nandigram, BJP candidate Hasirani Rath, mother of slain personal assistant to Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari, Chandranath Rath, secured 1,64,427 votes, defeating Congress nominee Milan Pradhan, who polled 41,674 votes. CPI candidate Santi Gopal Giri finished third with 5,779 votes.
In Rejinagar, a Muslim-majority constituency in Murshidabad district, BJP candidate Shankharavh Sarkar won with 1,29,914 votes, defeating Aam Janata Unnayan Party (AJUP) nominee Golam Nabi Azad, who secured 54,098 votes. The BJP polled 63.14 per cent of the votes, while Azad received 26.29 per cent.
The BJP's win in Rejinagar came amid a fragmented opposition, with the Congress, the Trinamool Congress and the breakaway Democratic Trinamool Congress failing to mount a strong challenge.
Rath's victory in Nandigram carried an emotional dimension following the killing of her son, who was shot dead by gunmen in Madhyamgram, on the outskirts of Kolkata, on May 6, two days after the BJP won the West Bengal Assembly elections.
Nandigram had emerged as a key political battleground in 2021, when Adhikari defeated then Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. The bypoll was necessitated after Adhikari, who won the seat in the 2026 Assembly elections, retained Bhabanipur.
In Rejinagar, the by-election was necessitated after AJUP founder Humayun Kabir vacated the seat. Kabir, a former TMC leader, had won the constituency by over 58,000 votes in the 2026 Assembly elections but retained Nowda. His son, Golam Nabi Azad, contested the bypoll on the AJUP ticket.
The twin victories come nearly four months after the BJP came to power in West Bengal, ending the Trinamool Congress's 15-year rule.
(With inputs from PTI)
