The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has officially announced its candidates for the forthcoming assembly by-elections scheduled for April 9. The party is banking on its seasoned leaders to secure victories in five key constituencies across Goa, Karnataka, Nagaland, and Tripura.

For the Ponda seat in Goa, Ritesh Ravi Naik will represent the party, while Daochier I Imchen will contest from the Koridang seat in Nagaland. In Tripura, the BJP has fielded Zahir Chakraborty for the Dharmanagar seat.

According to the list released by the BJP, Virbhadraiah will contest from the Charantimath Bagalkot seat, and Srinivas T Dasakariyappa will run for the Davanagere South seat in Karnataka. This announcement comes as the by-elections for these five assembly seats are set for April 9, with additional elections in three other constituencies in Gujarat and Maharashtra on April 23, as confirmed by Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.

Kumar also stated that the counting of votes for all eight constituencies will take place on May 4. These by-elections have become necessary due to the passing of current legislators. The eight constituencies include Ponda in Goa, Bagalkot and Davanagere South in Karnataka, Koridang in Nagaland, Dharmanagar in Tripura, Umreth in Gujarat, and Rahuri and Baramati in Maharashtra.

The Lok Sabha seats include: Bashirhat (West Bengal), Shillong (Meghalaya). The assembly seats are as follows: Goa: Ponda; Gujarat: Umreth; Karnataka: Bagalkot, Davanagere South; Maharashtra: Rahuri, Baramati; Nagaland: Koridang; Tripura: Dharmanagar.

During a press conference on March 15 in the national capital, Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar outlined the election timeline, stating, "By-elections will be held for eight assembly seats in Goa, Gujarat, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Nagaland, and Tripura. The schedule is as follows: voting on April 9 for Goa, Karnataka, Nagaland, and Tripura, and on April 23 for Gujarat and Maharashtra. Counting of votes will occur on May 4 for all cases."

This two-phase structure aligns with the main assembly elections: the first phase on April 9 for Goa (Ponda), Karnataka (Bagalkot, Davanagere South), Nagaland (Koridang), and Tripura (Dharmanagar); the second phase on April 23 for Gujarat (Umreth) and Maharashtra (Rahuri, Baramati). All seats will have their votes counted simultaneously on May 4 (Monday), streamlining election logistics.