Manjalpur: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Monday retained its stronghold Manjalpur Assembly constituency in Gujarat after its candidate Satish Govindbhai Patel won the bypoll, defeating his rival, Congress candidate Bhikhabhai Rabari, by a margin of more than 30,000 votes, according to the Election Commission's final results.
The bypoll was held on July 30, with the counting of votes taking place on Monday under the supervision of the Election Commission.
In Bihar's Bankipur, Jan Suraaj Party founder Prashant Kishor has further consolidated his lead after the 22nd round of counting. He has polled 44,525 votes and is ahead of his nearest rival by 12,809 votes. BJP candidate Neeraj Kumar is trailing with 31,716 votes, while RJD's Rekha Kumari is currently in third position with 10,562 votes. With the gap continuing to widen, Kishor has strengthened his position in the closely watched contest.
Bankipur contest intensifies
The Bankipur seat was considered a BJP bastion since 1995, and the seat went vacant for a bypoll after MLA Nitin Nabin was appointed BJP national president.
Congress leads in Datia
Meanwhile, in Madhya Pradesh's Datia, Congress candidate Ghanshyam Singh has established a strong lead in the Datia Assembly bypoll after 11 rounds of counting on Monday. Singh has secured 54,169 votes and is ahead of BJP candidate Ashutosh Tiwari by 12,221 votes.
