Opposition snatches high-profile Kairana seat from BJP

With prestige at stake in every single bypoll, the BJP was seen losing the high-profile Kairana Lok Sabha seat in politically important Uttar Pradesh to a united Opposition after a communally-charged election campaign, while similar appeared the result for Bhandara-Gondiya Lok Sabha constituency in Maharashtra, as per the trends and results announced by the Election Commission.

Commenting on the results, senior BJP leader and Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh said one has to take two steps backward before a big leap.

Asked about the BJP's performance in these by-elections ahead of next year's general polls, Singh said, "For a massive leap, one always has to go two steps backward."

"We are going to take a massive leap," he added.

AAP leader and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal latched onto the bypoll results to attack the BJP and said it reflects the anger against the Modi government.

The trends from UP showed the biggest electoral upset for the BJP with the joint opposition candidate, RLD's Tabassum Hasan, leading by a big margin in Kairana Lok Sabha constituency. The seat fell vacant following death of the BJP candidate Mriganka Singh's father, Hukum Singh.

Rashtriya Lok Dal's Tabassum Hasan, supported by the Congress, Samajwadi Party and the Bahujan Samaj Party, established an early lead over Mriganka Singh right from the beginning to establish an almost invincible lead by noon.