PM Modi hailed BJP’s ‘spectacular’ by-poll victories in J&K’s Nagrota and Odisha’s Nuapada. Devyani Rana won in Nagrota with 42,350 votes, while Jay Dholakia secured 1,23,869 votes in Nuapada, both winning with large margins.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday thanked voters in Jammu and Kashmir’s Nagrota and Odisha’s Nuapada after the BJP registered sweeping by-poll victories. Calling the victories “spectacular” and a reflection of public faith in the party’s governance model, PM Modi in a post on X said, “I thank the people of Nagrota in Jammu and Kashmir as well as Nuapada in Odisha for blessing the BJP with spectacular victories in the by-polls. Congratulations to the newly elected MLAs Devyani Rana Ji and Jay Dholakia Ji. Wishing them the very best in serving the people. Compliments to the BJP Karyakartas who worked round the clock to ensure these wins.”
Details of the Victories
Nagrota, Jammu and Kashmir
Devyani Rana of the Bharatiya Janata Party won the Nagrota seat with 42,350 votes, securing a victory margin of 24,647. Harsh Dev Singh of the Jammu & Kashmir National Panthers Party (India) finished second with 17,703 votes, while Shamim Begum of the Jammu & Kashmir National Conference stood third with 10,872 votes, losing by 31,478. Rana is the daughter of former BJP MLA Devender Rana, who died on October 31, 2024, a week after taking oath as MLA of J-K Assembly. Rana had been a two time MLA of Nagrota. While he won the 2024 polls under the BJP ticket, he was part of the JKNC and won under their ticket in 2014.
Nuapada, Odisha
In Odisha’s Nuapada Jay Dholakia from the BJP has accumulated 1,23,869 votes, leading against Congress’s Ghasi Ram Majhi by 83748 votes.
Political Reactions
BJP Leader from Jammu and Kashmir, Altaf Thakur said that the National Conference has faced a “shameful defeat” in Nagrota and Budgam. Thakur said, “BJP has secured a landslide victory and the Mahagathbandhan has had a shameful defeat in Bihar. PM Narendra Modi’s model and promises have won… People of Bihar have neglected Rahul Gandhi and his lies… NC has had a shameful defeat in Nagrota and Budgam, and this is the people’s referendum against the NC…”
Opposition’s Take on J&K Results
AICC General Secretary Ghulam Ahmad Mir said the outcome in Nagrota was largely anticipated. “The results of Nagrota were expected because BJP had won this seat with a good margin in 2024. After his demise, people had sympathy for Devender Rana’s daughter, which is why she won,” he said. Speaking on Budgam, he added, “People didn’t have a lot of love for PDP, but after one year of National Conference, people were angered.”
Congress J&K President Tariq Hameed Karra echoed similar sentiments, saying both seats had distinct political contexts. “The result of Nagrota was on expected lines. The seat always belonged to BJP,” Karra said. On the outcome in Budgam, he pointed to public resentment over National Conference chief Omar Abdullah contesting from two seats. “People of Budgam were unhappy because the CM contested on two seats, Ganderbal and Budgam, and he said he would retain the seat where he would have a bigger lead. Despite having a bigger lead in Budgam, he did not retain that seat. People were unhappy with the functioning of the government, and that is why the result is what it is today,” he said.
Background of the J-K By-polls
Counting of votes for two constituencies in J-K’s Budgam and Nagrota took place on Friday. Nagrota saw a head-to-head contest between the BJP and the National Conference (NC), with the latter fielding Shamim Begum. Polling for the bye-elections was held in Budgam following the resignation of Omar Abdullah from the constituency. Chief Minister Abdullah chose to retain the Ganderbal constituency and vacate Budgam after winning both the seats in the 2024 assembly elections. (ANI)
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