The Election Commission of India (ECI) has announced that bypolls for six Assembly seats in West Bengal will be conducted on November 13, with results to be declared on November 23. The constituencies involved in the bypolls include Sitai (SC), Madarihat (ST), Naihati, Haroa, Medinipur, and Taldangra.
In the 2021 Assembly elections, the Trinamool Congress (TMC) secured five of these seats, while the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) won one. The Sitai seat became vacant when TMC MLA Jagadish Chandra Basunia was elected as a Member of Parliament from Coochbehar, defeating former Union Minister Nisith Pramanik in the recent Lok Sabha elections.
Madarihat, another northern West Bengal seat, was previously held by BJP leader Manoj Tigga, who resigned from his MLA position after being chosen as the BJP's candidate for the Alipurduar Lok Sabha seat, which he subsequently won.
The remaining four constituencies are located in southern West Bengal. Naihati's seat was held by former state minister Partha Bhowmick, who won the Barrackpore Lok Sabha seat, defeating BJP candidate and sitting MLA Arjun Singh. The Medinipur seat was vacated when TMC candidate June Malia, who previously held the position, won from the Medinipur Lok Sabha constituency, defeating BJP MLA Agnimitra Paul.
In Haroa, TMC leader Sk Nurul Islam (Haji) served as the MLA until he was elected to Parliament from the Basirhat seat. His election led to the vacancy of the Haroa Assembly seat, which remains to be filled in the upcoming bypolls.
