Cong wrests Ratlam-Jhabua Lok Sabha seat from BJP

Bhopal, November 24

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In a keenly fought bypoll held in the wake of the BJP's rout in Bihar, the party nominee Nirmala Bhuria lost to her Congress rival by a margin of over 88,000 votes in the Ratlam-Jhabua Lok Sabha seat in Madhya Pradesh, which the saffron party won in 2014.

The Congress has fielded former Union minister Kantilal Bhuria, while the BJP gave the ticket to Petlawad MLA Nirmala Bhuria, daughter of Dileep Singh Bhuria, whose death necessitated the by-election.

The ruling party, however, retained the Dewas Assembly constituency by an impressive margin.

BJP's Gayatri Raje Puar won the bypoll from the Dewas Assembly seat by an impressive margin of 30,778 votes, defeating Congress' Jai Prakash Shastri, an election official said.

Puar got 89,358 votes, while Shastri secured 58,580 votes in the bypoll necessitated by the death of Gayatri's husband Tukoji Rao Puar of erstwhile royal family of Dewas.

TRS retains Warangal

Ruling TRS retained the Warangal (SC) Lok Sabha seat in Telangana with its candidate Pasunoori Dayakar winning with a margin of nearly 4.6 lakh votes.

Cong wins Mizoram Assembly seat

AIZAWL:  Former Mizoram health minister Lal Thanzara of Congress was declared elected in the bypoll to Aizawl North-III Assembly seat with a thumping majority.

Lal Thanzara, who is the younger brother of Chief Minister Lal Thanhawla, scored 1,498 more votes than the total number of votes secured by Mizo National Front candidate K Vanlalvena and NDA nominee Lalduhawma.

While Lal Thanzara scored 6,175 votes followed by Vanlalvena who bagged 2,790 votes, the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) nominee Lalduhawma managed to get 1,887 votes and NOTA at 64 votes.

The bypoll in the constituency was necessitated by the resignation of Lal Thanzara as a legislator and health minister on August 18 last due to allegations of 'conflict of interests'.

It was alleged that the younger brother of the state CM held more than 21 per cent shares in a construction company which bagged crores of rupees worth road construction works under the state government.

Lal Thanzara's HP Food Products company was also alleged to have supplied crores of rupees worth nutrition items to the state Social Welfare department while being Parliamentary Secretary and later a minister of state.

Justifying his resignation, Lal Thanzara had said that allegations against him, though baseless and false, had caused embarrassment to the government and the Congress party.

BJP finally enters Manipur Assembly

The BJP won two assembly constituencies in Manipur, in by polls held on Saturday— their first victory in the current state legislature. 

Thongam Biswajit Singh and Khumukcham Joykishan won the Thongju and Thangmeiband seats respectively, defeating their Congress rivals.

The by-elections were necessitated after Assembly Speaker Th. Lokeshwar Singh disqualified All India Trinamool Congress legislators — Thongam Biswajit Singh, Khumukcham Joykishan and Lukhoi Singh — under the anti-defection law on May 28.  However, Manipur High Court stayed the Speaker's order on Lukhoi Singh, who represents Wangoi constituency.

In Thangmeiband, Joykishan defeated nearest rival Jyotin Waikhom by 1,907 votes. An 85 per cent voter turnout was recorded in the segment.

The former Trinamool Congress legislator polled 12,104 votes while Waikhom secured 10,197 votes.

In Thongju, which recorded 92 per cent voter turnout, Biswajit defeated nearest rival Bijoy Koijam of the Congress by 3,213 votes. Biswajit secured 14,606 votes and Koijam 11,393 votes. Seventy-eight voters opted for 'None of The Above'.

"There has been no significant development in the state under Congress government under Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh. People in both assembly constituencies have rightly rejected the Congress through these by-elections," Manipur BJP president Th. Chaoba Singh said.

The elections will be particularly significant, given the state goes to Assembly polls in 2017.

Reacting to the loss, the Congress said it was "deeply concerned" over the defeat in three by-elections in Manipur and Meghalaya. Hill State People's Democratic Party won the seat by defeating the Congress in Meghalaya.

"Although our candidates lost in the by-elections (in Meghalaya and Manipur) by narrow margins, we are deeply concerned. We will soon sit down and analyse our defeat to the BJP, especially in Manipur," Congress leader V Narayanasamy said by phone.

"We will take all steps to get all secular parties together to prevent communal forces from forming the next government in the north-eastern states," he said.

In the 60-member assembly, ruling Congress has 48 members, Trinamool Congress and Naga People's Front four members each, and Lok Janshakti Party and Nationalist Congress Party one member each. The BJP now has two members.— Agencies