Pune, Mar 2 (IANS): The counting of votes of the February 26 by-elections held in Kasbapeth and Chinchwad Assembly constituencies started at 8 a.m. here on Thursday, officials said.

In Kasbapeth, the process began first with the postal ballots counting and later the EVMs voting at the FCI Godown in Koregaon Park, with 20 rounds of counting.

In Chinchwad, the postal ballots are being counted first, followed by the EVMs at the SAG Kamgar Bhavan in Thergaon, with 37 rounds of counting.

The two bitterly contested by-polls were necessitated on account of the death of the sitting BJP MLAs -- Mukta J. Tilak (Kasbapet) and Laxman J. Jagtap (Chinchwad), in December 2022-January 2023.

The BJP had fielded veteran leader Hemant N. Rasane in Kasba Peth and Jagtap's widow Ashwini L. Jagtap in Chinchwad, both making a determined bid to capture the seats after the party's efforts failed with the Opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) to have unopposed elections.

The combined MVA candidates who fought against the BJP nominees are -- Congress' Ravindra Dhangekar (Kasbapeth), and the Nationalist Congress Party's Vithal 'Nana' Kate, and a Shiv Sena (UBT) rebel standing as an independent Rahul Kalate (Chinchwad).

The early trends for both seats are likely to be available around noon, and the final results shall be declared by today evening.