Byelection Results Out; BJP Draws A Blank; Shatrughan Sinha Returns As MP

Kolkata: The BJP drew a blank in the byelections for one Lok Sabha seat and four assembly constituencies.

The results of the April 12 bypolls, declared on April 16, showed Trinamool Congress (TMC) bagging both seats in West Bengal.

The Asansol Lok Sabha seat, which fell vacant after erstwhile BJP MP Babul Supriyo joined TMC last year, was won by veteran actor-turned-politician Shatrughan Sinha.

The 75-year-old Shatrughan, who joined TMC last month, beat BJP’s Agnimitra Paul by a staggering margin of over 3 lakh votes.

Shatrughan, a two-time former Union minister in the Atal Bihari Vajpayee-headed government and a BJP member of Rajya Sabha (1996-2008) and Lok Sabha (2009-2019), will thus return to Parliament after a three-year gap.

Babul Supriyo was declared winner in the Ballygunge assembly seat, defeating CPI(M)’s Saira Shah Halim – the niece of legendary actor Naseeruddin Shah – by 20,000-odd votes. BJP’s Keya Ghosh was a distant third.

RJD clinches Bochahan seat in Bihar

Elsewhere, Rashtriya Janata Dal won the Bochahan assembly seat in Bihar, with Amar Paswan defeating BJP rival Baby Kumari by over 35,000.

Congress wins in Chhhattisgarh, Maharashtra

Ruling Congress party won the Khairagarh seat in Chhattisgarh as Yashoda Verma beat BJP’s Komal Janghel by more than 20,000 votes. Congress now has 71 seats in the 90-member Assembly.

Congress also won the Kolhapur North in Maharashtra, with Jayashri Jadhav defeating Satyajit Kadam of BJP by 18,000-plus votes.