AGARTALA, June 30 (TIWN): On yet another momentum of the growing support for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) here in the state, the Tripura CPI-M and its Left front yet once again won the both the Pratapgarh (SC) and Surma (SC) Assembly seats in the recently by-elections. In a massive mandate, candidate for 13-Pratapgarh Constituency Ramu Das of CPI (M) defeated his nearest BJP candidate, Mousami Das by a margin of 17,326 votes whereas in Surma, CPI-M candidate Anjan Das defeated his nearest rival from BJP, Asish Das by a margin of 15,309 votes. Bypoll was necessitated in Pratapgarh due to the death of CPI-M veteran and former minister Anil Sarkar and in Surma due to the death of sitting MLA Sudhir Das. In total 44,365 polled votes among 50,004 voters comprising 25,512 male voters and 24,492 female voters of Pratapgarh assembly constituency, CPI(M) candidate Ramu Das got 27,555 votes, Mousumi Das of BJP got 10,229 votes, Congress candidate Ranjit Das got 5187. The winning margin of CPI-M candidate is 17,326 votes from his nearest rival BJP candidate Mousumi Das. In the 46-Surma (SC) reserve assembly constituency, CPI (M) candidate Anjan Das got 23,275 votes and his nearest rival BJP candidate Ashish Das got 7966 votes and Congress candidate Nagendra Chandra Biswas got only 2528 votes. The winning margin of CPI (M) candidate is 15,309 votes from his nearest rival BJP candidate Ashish Das.It is to be mentioned here that, this is for the third time in a row that BJP has consecutively secured the second position in the Panchayat Election, TTAADC election as well as the Tripura by-election.

 It has been learnt that BJP has got to emerge as the main opposition party here in Tripura by the growing support of the common masses of the state. Leaving behind congress, BJP has secured the second position in the long run of Tripura by-elections. With 85 percent in Pratapgarh and 78 percent in Surma constituency of the electorate having cast their votes on for the first time used Electronic Voting machines (EVMs) in which candidates' photographs have been displayed to avoid confusion among the voters, the by-polling had ended peacefully on June 27.

However, despite stormy weather, over 83 per cent of the 92,146 voters on June 27 cast their vote in the by-elections to two assembly constituencies in Tripura. This is for the first time candidates' photographs have been displayed in Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) to avoid confusion among the voters. According to the officials, 50,004 voters in Pratapgarh and 42,142 in Surma assembly constituencies were eligible to cast their votes to choose their representative from the nine candidates in the fray.

The Pratapgarh seat fell vacant due to the death of CPI-M veteran and former minister Anil Sarkar while the by-poll was required for the Surma seat as its sitting MLA Sudhir Das died. Sarkar won from his constituency for eight times at a stretch since 1978 and Das won the Surma seat on five consecutive occasions since 1993.