One of the interesting aspects of the results is that each party managed to wrest a seat from the other that it hadn't won in decades – BJP bagging Jobat and Congress winning Raigaon. BJP retained Khandwa parliamentary seat quite comfortably with Gyenshwar Patil beating Congress's Rajnarayan Singh. However, the victory margin of 82,140 was only a third of Nandkumar Singh Chouhan's 2.73 lakh in 2019. In tribal reserved Jobat, BJP candidate Sullochana Rawat, who switched over from Congress just days before ticket distribution, defeated Congress's Mahesh Patel by 6,080 votes.

Shivraj Singh Couhan was particularly thrilled by the Jobat victory. "The results show that people's support for BJP is amazing and unprecedented" he said. "I say unprecedented because while we were winning Khandwa Lok Sabha seat in any case, we also won Jobat, where 90% voters are tribals and BJP won this seat only twice in 70 years. Even in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, we trailed in this assembly segment by 18,000 votes," said the chief minister. Another seat that the BJP won only once earlier, Prithvipur in Niwari district, adjoining the UP border, swung to the saffron camp. BJP's Sishupal Singh Yadav defeated Congress' Nitendra Singh Rathore by 15,641 votes. Yadav was with Samajwadi party during the 2018 assembly elections and joined BJP in 2019.

Congress's lone victory was in Raigaon, an SC reserved assembly seat, where Kalpana Verma defeated BJP's Pratima Bhgri by 12,265 votes. Raigaon is a traditional BJP fortress, which Congress won for the first time in three decades. The seat fell vacant due to the death of five-time BJP MLA Jugal Kishore Bagri.

CM Chouhan believes the win in Jobat is an indication that tribals have acknowledged the government's works for the community. "Whether Khandwa, Prithvipur or Jobat, this outcome shows people's love, faith and respect for Prime Minister Narendra Modi. People appreciate what the Centre has done, be it in Corona control or for Atmanirbhar Bharat" he said.

Chouhan pointed out that BJP won although BSP didn't contest. "This is significant. It is believed that if BSP does not contest, then its votes go to Congress. In the assembly elections, BSP got 31,000 votes in Prithvipur and 16,000 in Raigaon. Without the presence of BSP, we still won" he said.

Congress, led by former CM Kamal Nath, could not repeat the glory of Damoh by-poll victory in May this year. With CM Chouhan addressing 40 public meetings and halting five nights in the by-poll constituencies, dining with villagers, BJP's onslaught proved tough to beat.

While BJP rolled out its big guns – state party president VD Sharma, Union ministers Narendra Singh Tomar, Jyotiraditya Scindia and Prahala Patel, BJP national general secretary Kailash Vijayvargiya and home minister Narottam Mishra, nearly two dozen ministers were given election management responsibilities. In Congress, on the other hand, campaigning was majorly centered around Nath, who addressed 15 public meetings. Sachin Pilot campaigned in the last leg.

A week before the October 30 by-poll Congress received a massive shock when its first-time MLA from Barwaha assembly seat Sachin Birla quit to join ruling BJP. Barwaha is one of the eight assembly segments of Khandwa Lok Sabha seat with a predominant Gujjar population.

After Sachin Birla – who hails from the Gujjar community – left Congress, former CM and LOP Kamal Nath invited Sachin Pilot to woo Gujjar voters in Khandwa on the last day of campaigning.

But Sachin Birla was not the only setback. Former Union minister of state Arun Yadav, who was Congress candidate from this parliamentary seat for three times since 2009, withdrew from the candidature race just before tickets distribution.

Yadav was campaigning in the seat for six months prior to by-poll expecting the party's ticket but in October he withdrew citing family reasons. Party sources claimed he does not see eye-to-eye with Kamal Nath.

Congress lost the battle of Khandea the day Yadav retracted from the candidature race. Former state Congress president Arun Yadav had won the seat in 2009 against BJP's six-time MP Nandkumar Singh Chouhan though he lost the 2014 and 2019 parliamentary elections.

Chouhan aka Nandu Bhaiyya, died of Covid infection in March this year necessitating the by-poll. His son was a ticket aspirant though BJP chose to field a party worker, Gyaneshwar Patil, who was a close associate of Chouhan.

Patil had never contested an election before and was fielded against Congress' former MLA Rajanaraya Singh Purni. Chief Minister Chouhan addressed 16 public meetings in the Lok Sabha seat and halted two nights in rural areas. (IPA Service)