Vote counting is underway today (3 August) for the assembly by-elections held on 30 July in Bihar's Bankipur, Gujarat's Manjalpur, and Madhya Pradesh's Datia constituencies.
Security has been tightened at all counting centres, with a large number of security personnel deployed to maintain law and order during the process.
Among the three contests, the Bankipur and Datia by-elections have attracted the most attention and are being closely watched across the country. In the very early trends, the Congress has taken the lead in Datia, while Jan Suraj founder Prashant Kishor is leading in Bankipur. However, these are only initial trends, and the lead is expected to change as more rounds of counting are completed.
The first trends began emerging soon after counting started this morning, with a clearer picture of the likely winners expected by around noon. Election officials are expected to declare the final results once counting of all votes is completed.