There was a lot at stake for all parties in the Bihar bypolls this time. While it was a litmus test for the Congress, the opposition RJD had pinned its hopes of a resurgence based on the results. The Congress, which went solo in Bihar assembly bypolls this time, faced a reality check as its candidates lost their deposits on both the seats while Nitish Kumar’s JD(U) decimated Tejashwi Yadav’s ‘khela’ dream by winning the seats. Last month, Leader of Opposition Tejashwi Yadav had said that if the RJD wins Kusheshwar Asthan and Tarapur seats, there could be a ‘Khela’ in the state. Tejashwi was allegedly hinting at bringing smaller parties together to reach the majority mark and topple the incumbent NDA government. The Opposition benches have 115 seats in the state while the majority mark is 122.
However, the NDA not only won the two seats but further consolidated its position in the government by taking its tally to 128. Debutants Aman Bhushan Hazari and Rajiv Kumar Singh won Kusheshwar Asthan (SC) and Tarapur respectively on the JD(U) ticket. Hazari beat his nearest RJD rival by a margin of over 12 thousand votes, retaining the seat which was earlier held by his late father Shashi Bhushan Hazari.
Hazari got 59887 votes while RJD candidate Ganesh Bharti received 47192 votes. The Congress candidate Atirek Kumar could secure only 5603 votes, losing his deposit. From Tarapur, JD(U)’s Rajeev Kumar Singh registered a victory by securing 79090 votes. The RJD candidate from the seat, Arun Kumar polled 75238 votes while the Congress candidate Rajesh Kumar Mishra got 3590 votes. Mishra also lost his deposit.
For the RJD, neither its caste card nor a high octane campaign by Tejashwi and Lalu Prasad proved sufficient. Chirag Paswan’s Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) also failed to make a mark in Tarapur, which falls under his own Jamui Lok Sabha seat and in Kusheshwar Asthan which is a part of Samastipur represented by his rebellious cousin Prince Raj.