Independent Shankar Singh Clinches Victory in Rupauli Bye-Election

Independent candidate Shankar Singh wins Rupauli bye-election, defeating JD(U)'s Kaladhar Prasad Mandal. Independent MP Pappu Yadav alleges BJP supporters did not back JDU candidate. Bye-election follows Bima Bharti's resignation. Counting began for 13 seats across seven states.

Independent candidate Shankar Singh emerged victorious in the Rupauli assembly bye-election, outpacing JD-U's Kaladhar Prasad Mandal by a margin of 8,246 votes. Singh secured 68,070 votes to Mandal's 59,824. RJD's Bima Bharti also lost, garnering 30,619 votes.

Independent MP Pappu Yadav claimed that even the hardcore supporters of the BJP didn't vote for the JD-U candidate. Yadav alleged that Nitish Kumar's cabinet conspired to defeat the extremely backward caste seat by giving the ticket to Kaladhar Prasad Mandal.

The Rupauli bye-election was prompted by the resignation of Bima Bharti, who left JD(U) to contest upcoming Lok Sabha elections on an RJD ticket. Vote counting for 13 legislative assembly seats across seven states began on Saturday morning, with elections held in key constituencies including Tamil Nadu, Bihar, and West Bengal among others.

(With inputs from agencies.)