Mumbai, September 2: Bypolls to the seven assembly seats, including two in Tripura and one each in Kerala, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, will be held on Tuesday, September 5. The byelection in Kerala will be held on Puthuppally assembly seat, which fell vacant after the demise of Congress stalwart and former chief minister Oommen Chandy, who passed away due to complications from cancer. The 79-year-old former CM breathed his last on July 18 at a hospital in Bengaluru.

The Puthuppally assembly constituency falls in Kerala's Kottayam district. Soon after the election commission announced the bypoll date, the Congress party announced the late Oommen Chandy's son, Chandy Oommen, as its candidate for the Puthuppally byelection. Due to the late Chandy's popularity in the area, the Puthuppally assembly has been a Congress fortress for nearly 53 years. Boxanagar, Dhanpur Assembly By-Elections 2023: From Date of Polling To Result and List of Candidates, Know Everything About Tripura Vidhan Sabha Bypolls.

Puthupally Assembly By-Election 2023 Results:

Voting for one seat of the Kerala Vidhan Sabha polls will take place on Tuesday, September 5, along with the byelections in Tripura, Jharkhand, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand and West Bengal. The counting of votes of Puthupally by-election 2023 will be conducted on Friday, September 8, with the results likely to be announced the same day.

Why Puthupally By-Election 2023 Was Necessitated:

The by-election to the Puthuppally assembly seat in Kerala was necessitated following the death of sitting MLA and Congress stalwart Oommen Chandy. The Congress MLA for the last five decades passed away at a private hospital in Bengaluru on July 18. Chandy, an MLA from Puthuppally in Kerala, represented the assembly seat for over 50 years. The former Chief Minister of Kerala, well-known as OC among his party workers, was one of the most popular politicians in Kerala. Ghosi Assembly By-Elections 2023: From Date of Polling To Result and List of Candidates, Know Everything About Uttar Pradesh Vidhan Sabha Bypolls.

Candidates for Puthuppally By-Election 2023:

The by-election in Kerala's Puthuppally will witness a triangular fight between the Congress, the CPI-M and the BJP party. While Congress has fielded late Oommen Chandy's son, Chandy Oommen, the CPI-M has nominated youth leader Jaick C Thomas, and Lijin Lal is BJP's candidate. Besides these three, four other candidates have also filed their nominations for the September 5 bypolls.

The counting of votes for the Kerala bypoll will take place on September 8, with the winner of the Puthuppally by-election likely to be sworn in on September 11 once the assembly session resumes. While the Congress party has expressed confidence that Chandy Oommen will win the bypoll with a 50,000 margin, the CPI-M said the byelections will not be a walkover. BJP Names Candidates for Tripura and West Bengal Assembly Bypolls.

Amid all this, the Kerala bypoll will be a litmus test for the saffron party as they have failed to make inroads in the Southern States, including Kerala. Will BJP begin their Lok Sabha polls campaign for 2024 with a win in Kerala bypolls, or will Congress continue to make Puthupally their fortress, only time will tell.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Sep 02, 2023 12:27 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).