Nilambur by-election: Aryadan Shoukath leads by Over 10,000 votes; M. Swaraj trails
Malappuram: United Democratic Front (UDF) candidate Aryadan Shoukath has taken a commanding lead in the Nilambur Assembly by-election, with a margin of over 10,000 votes as counting continues across several centres in the constituency.
His closest rival, M. Swaraj of the ruling Left Democratic Front (LDF), is currently trailing. The early trends have also positioned Trinamool Congress-backed candidate P. V. Anvar in third place.
The outcome of the Nilambur bypoll is being closely watched, as it is considered a bellwether for the political climate ahead of the 2026 Kerala Assembly elections.
The by-elections, held on June 19, covered five constituencies across four states: Visavadar and Kadi in Gujarat; Kaliganj in West Bengal; Ludhiana West in Punjab; and Nilambur in Kerala.
Voter turnout varied significantly across the states. Kerala’s Nilambur recorded the highest turnout at 75.27%, followed by Kaliganj in West Bengal at 69.85%, Visavadar in Gujarat at 56.89%, Kadi at 57.90%, and Ludhiana West in Punjab at 51.33%.
The Nilambur seat fell vacant following the resignation of the sitting MLA. In this high-stakes contest, the LDF fielded M. Swaraj, while Aryadan Shoukath represented the Congress-led UDF. The BJP-led NDA nominated Mohan George, while P. V. Anvar contested independently with the backing of the Trinamool Congress. In total, ten candidates are in the fray.
In Gujarat’s Kadi seat, the BJP has fielded Rajendra Chavda against Congress’ Ramesh Chavda and AAP’s Jagdish Chavda. In Visavadar, BJP's Kirit Patel is facing off against AAP's Gopal Italia and Congress’ Nitin Ranpariya.
In West Bengal's Kaliganj, the key contenders include Congress candidate Kabil Uddin Sheikh (backed by the Left Front), Trinamool Congress’ Alifa Ahmed, and BJP’s Ashish Ghosh.
Punjab’s Ludhiana West constituency is witnessing a four-way contest between AAP's Sanjeev Arora, Congress’ Bharat Bhushan Ashu, BJP’s Jiwan Gupta, and Parupkar Singh Ghumman of the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD). Arora, currently a Rajya Sabha MP from AAP, is at the centre of speculation that Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal might be nominated to the upper house if Arora wins, although AAP leaders have dismissed such reports. Counting in Ludhiana West is being conducted at Khalsa College for Women.
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AIITA welcomes Karnataka’s ban on obscene songs in school events
Bhatkal: The Karnataka unit of the All India Ideal Teachers Association (AIITA) has welcomed the Karnataka government’s decision to strictly ban school children from dancing to obscene songs during educational and cultural programmes in government, aided, and private schools across the state.
AIITA Karnataka State President M. R. Manvi congratulated the government for taking what he termed an important step to preserve the sanctity of education.
“Such decisions to safeguard the dignity of school children and uphold the values of education are the need of the hour. This rule should not be limited to government schools alone but must be strictly implemented in all private educational institutions as well,” he said.
He further urged the government to address other concerns within school programmes.
“The government should not only prohibit obscene dances in the name of school anniversaries, but also ensure that plays and dialogues that incite religious hatred are avoided. Schools should be centres of harmony, not platforms for spreading hatred,” he added.
According to a recent circular issued by the Department of School Education and Literacy, obscene dances are adversely affecting the mental health and moral values of students.
In this regard, schools have been advised to use songs that promote nationalism, positive thinking, the greatness of Kannada culture, and value-based traditions instead of inappropriate content during programmes.
The circular also emphasises that students should be dressed in decent attire.
AIITA also backed the department’s warning that disciplinary action would be taken against head teachers if such guidelines are violated. The association has further demanded that district Deputy Directors of Public Instruction strictly monitor the implementation of these rules.
