Bypoll results: BJP leading in Milkipur, DMK in TN's Erode
What's the story
The counting of votes for the by-elections in Uttar Pradesh's Milkipur and Tamil Nadu's Erode East constituencies started at 8:00am on Saturday.
The Milkipur by-election was necessitated after Samajwadi Party MP Awadhesh Prasad vacated his seat after winning the Lok Sabha elections from Faizabad (Ayodhya) last year.
In Erode East, the bypoll was called after the death of Congress MLA EVKS Elangovan on December 14.
Milkipur bypoll
BJP and Samajwadi Party in close contest for Milkipur
In Milkipur, a fierce political battle is being fought between the Samajwadi Party (SP) and the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
The key players are SP's Ajit Prasad and BJP's Chandrabhanu Paswan.
Early trends show that the BJP is ahead with 6,082 votes, while Prasad is behind by 3,991 votes.
The Milkipur constituency falls under Ayodhya district where the BJP hopes to regain lost ground after losing this seat in the 2022 assembly polls.
Erode bypoll
Erode East bypoll: A contest between DMK and NTK
The Erode East bypoll, meanwhile, is a contest mainly between Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK)'s VC Chandirakumar and Naam Tamizhar Katchi's M K Seethalakshmi.
Although there are 46 candidates, including 44 independents, major parties such as All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) and BJP boycotted the election.
Early trends show DMK's Chandirakumar comfortably leading with 13,621 votes.
The voter turnout in Erode East stood at 67.97% on February 5.