Trinamool Congress and BSP today scored spectacular victories in West Bengal and Uttar Pradesh Assembly by-elections that saw the rout of Left Front in its bastions, while Congress snatched away the Firozabad Lok Sabha seat from Samajwadi Party. The Congress also put up an impressive show in the assembly by-elections bagging 10 of the 31 seats that went to polls.<br/><br/>Continuing its impressive showing in the Lok Sabha elections, the Trinamool Congress overran CPI-M and other Left partners in their strongholds. It bagged seven of the ten seats that went to polls retaining four and wresting three.<br/><br/>The sole victory for the Left Front came from Forward Bloc, while the widow of CPI-M veteran Subhash Chakraborty was humbled in Belgachia East. Samajwadi Party suffered a humiliating defeat in Uttar Pradesh where the ruling BSP wrested five assembly seats from the party in its tally of nine of the 11 by-elections.<br/><br/>In the Lok Sabha by-election, actor-turned- Congress candidate Raj Babbar defeated Dimple Yadav, daughter-in-law of SP supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav, by an overwhelming margin of 85,343 votes.<br/><br/>The seat was won in May by Dimple's husband Akhilesh Yadav, who retained Kannauj and gave up Firozabad. Babbar had lost from Sikri constituency in the May elections. BSP has made a surprise comeback in Uttar Pradesh. The Party wrested Powayan, Issuali, Hainsar Bazaar, Etawah and Bharthana assembly seats from Samajwadi Party while Padrauna and Jhansi from Congress. BSP has successfully retained its Lalitpur seat. Main opposition Samajwadi Party is the main loser who has lost all five seats which it won in the last assembly elections. In Kolasala, an Independent won the seat for the fourth time in a row.<br/><br/>Continuing its whitewash of the Left Front in the Lok Sabha elections in Kerala, the Congress retained all the three seats, Kannur, Ernakulam and Alappuzha.<br/><br/>The CPI (M), which heads the Left coalition governments in West Bengal and Kerala, drew a blank in a dozen seats. In West Bengal, out of 10 assembly seats, Trinamul Congress and Congress alliance have bagged eight seats. While ruling Left Front partner Forward Bloc has got one an Independent candidate bagged another seat.<br/><br/>Upbeat over her party's spectacular performance, Trinamool chief Mamata Banerjee said, it is a victory for democracy and peace. While Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee declined to comment on the outcome, Left Front chairman Biman Bose said the Left parties accepted the people's mandate and would analyse the factors responsible for the reverses.<br/><br/>In Rajasthan and in Himachal Pradesh, BJP defeated Congress candidates to win a seat each. BJP, however, yielded Vaishali Nagar seat in Chhattisgarh to Congress.