The Opposition RJD in Bihar on Saturday wrested the Bochahan assembly seat from the ruling NDA, with its candidate defeating the BJP nominee by a large margin of over 35,000 votes.

RJD candidate Amar Paswan, whose father Musafir Paswan's death had necessitated the by-election, polled 82,116 votes while his nearest BJP rival Baby Kumari got only 45,353. Expelled state minister Mukesh Sahani's Vikassheel Insaan Party (VIP), on the ticket of which Musafir Paswan had won the seat in 2020, finished a distant third with 29,671 votes. VIP was an NDA constituent till about a month ago.

Chhattisgarh: Congress wins Khairagarh assembly bypoll in Chhattisgarh

Rajnandgaon: The ruling Congress in Chhattisgarh on Saturday won byelection to the Khairagarh assembly constituency in Rajnandgaon district and maintained its winning streak in bypolls in the state. Congress' Yashoda Verma won by a margin of 20,176 votes against her nearest rival Komal Janghel of the BJP, a poll official said here. Verma got 87,879 votes while Janghel secured 67,703 votes, he said.

Narendra Soni, the nominee of the Janata Congress Chhattisgarh (J), could get only 1,222 votes. Byelection was held on April 12 following the death of incumbent JCC (J) MLA and former MP Devvrat Singh in November 2021. With the victory, the strength of Congress in the 90-member Assembly went up to 71. The opposition BJP suffered a fourth successive defeat at the hands of Congress in assembly bypolls held after the 2018 elections in the state.

Devvrat Singh, who belonged to the erstwhile royal family of Khairagarh, quit Congress in 2017 and joined JCC (J) the next year. He contested the 2018 assembly polls on JCC(J) ticket and defeated BJP candidate Komal Janghel by a thin margin of 870 votes. In 2018, Congress swept the elections winning 68 out of 90 seats while the BJP won 15. The JCC (J) and Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) contested the poll in alliance and bagged five and two seats, respectively.

In 2019, Congress won bypolls to Dantewada (won by the BJP in 2018) and Chitrakot assembly constituencies. The byelection to Chitrakot was necessitated after Congress MLA Dipak Baij was elected as MP. In 2020, Congress won Marwahi seat in the byelection after the death of former chief minister and sitting MLA Ajit Jogi.

The current strength of the BJP in the state assembly is 14. JCC(J)'s tally is reduced to three.

Maha Assembly bypoll: Cong retains Kolhapur North seat by over 18,000 votes

Kolhapur: In a boost to the ruling Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) combine in Maharashtra, the Congress on Saturday won the bypoll to the Kolhapur North Assembly constituency, retaining the seat by defeating the BJP by a margin of over 18,000 votes. Congress-MVA candidate Jayashri Jadhav bagged 96,176 votes, while BJP's Satyajeet Kadam polled 77,426 votes. Jadhav emerged victorious by a margin of 18,750 votes, election officials said. The by-election to this Assembly segment in Kolhapur district of western Maharashtra was necessitated following the death of sitting Congress MLA Chandrakant Jadhav due to COVID-19 in December 2021. The Congress had fielded the late legislator's widow from this seat. The bypoll was held on April 12 in which 61.19 per cent voter turnout was recorded.

Following the result, the workers of the Congress, which shares power in the state with the Shiv Sena and the NCP, celebrated the victory by dancing to the tune of music and throwing 'gulal'. Speaking to reporters after her win, Jadhav thanked the voters and said all three constituents of the MVA worked together to clinch the victory.

Maharashtra Congress chief Nana Patole termed the party's win as "victory of progressive thoughts". Maharashtra BJP president Chandrakant Patil said his party accepts the decision given by the voters. Reacting to the development, Congress leader and state Revenue Minister Balasaheb Thorat said, "The voters of Kolhapur North seat have rejected the attempts to create religious polarisation. Kolhapur has always followed the principle of equality."

In Mumbai, the Congress workers burst firecrackers at Tilak Bhavan, party's state headquarters, in Dadar area. Speaking to reporters in Nagpur, Congress's Patole said, "Efforts were on to hide the Centre's failure on the issues of inflation, unemployment, poverty, and the problems faced by small farmers and traders by creating religious hatred. The win has sent out a message from the birthplace of Shahu Maharaj."

The BJP has started facing a defeat in all by-elections, be it Bihar, Chhattisgarh or West Bengal, he added. There were 15 candidates in the fray for the Kolhapur North seat, though the main fight was between the Congress and the BJP. During the poll campaign, senior leaders of the MVA as well as from BJP had come to Kolhapur to canvass for their candidates.