Polling for the Bankipur Assembly by-election in Patna commenced on Thursday, 30 July, with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) making a final appeal to voters to back development and keep the constituency on a trajectory of growth. The bypoll is one of three simultaneous Assembly by-elections held across Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, and Gujarat on the same day.

BJP's Appeal and Allegations

Bihar BJP President Sanjay Saraogi urged voters with the message: 'Pehle matdaan, phir jalpaan. Vote for development so that the region continues to progress and move forward on the path of growth.' Saraogi also levelled serious allegations against the Jan Suraaj Party (JSP), claiming that attempts were being made to influence the electoral process through fake identity cards. 'There is an attempt to influence the election by creating a large number of fake identity cards. Jan Suraaj is behind this. We came across several such cases last night,' he alleged.

BJP spokesperson Guru Prakash expressed confidence in the party's prospects, describing the contest as 'a matter of faith, trust and decades of our commitment.' He added that the BJP was receiving 'an unprecedented and historic mandate from the people of Bankipur.'

The Bankipur Contest

The Bankipur seat, located in the urban core of Patna, fell vacant after five-time MLA and BJP national president Nitin Nabin was elected to the Rajya Sabha in April, leaving the Assembly seat unoccupied. The BJP has fielded its youth wing leader Neeraj Kumar Sinha as its candidate. The JSP has nominated political strategist-turned-politician Prashant Kishor, and the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) has entered the contest with Rekha Gupta, making it a closely watched three-cornered fight.

Bypolls in Datia and Manjalpur

Simultaneously, polling was underway in Datia constituency in Madhya Pradesh, where the BJP has fielded first-time Assembly candidate Ashutosh Tiwari against Congress veteran Kunwar Ghanshyam Singh, who is contesting from the seat for the seventh time. The Datia seat fell vacant on 2 April after Congress MLA Rajendra Bharti was disqualified under Section 8 of the Representation of the People Act, 1951, following his conviction in a bank scam case.

In Gujarat, the Manjalpur constituency in Vadodara went to the polls following the death of senior BJP MLA Yogesh Patel, a veteran legislator who had represented the seat since 1990 across eight terms and had served as pro tem Speaker of the Gujarat Assembly in 2022. The BJP has fielded Satish Patel, while the Congress has nominated former minister Bhikhabhai Rabari.

Security and Electoral Arrangements

The Election Commission of India (ECI) and local administrations put in place extensive security arrangements across all three constituencies to ensure free, fair, and transparent polling. Election officials oversaw the distribution of Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) and related materials to polling personnel from designated EVM centres ahead of voting. Campaigning for all three bypolls concluded on 28 July, with parties making a final push through rallies, roadshows, and public outreach.

With votes to be counted after polling closes, all eyes will be on Bankipur — where the Prashant Kishor factor has injected unusual national interest into what is typically a local contest.