Resounding victory for NDA in Madhubani

Madhubani: The NDA has registered a resounding victory in Madhubani district, mirroring its performance across the state.One of the most striking turnarounds occurred in Benipatti, where it had once appeared that incumbent Vinod Narain Jha might even lose his party nomination to singer Maithili Thakur.

However, strong resistance from Jha and his supporters, coupled with deft political manoeuvring, enabled him to retain the nomination. Despite this, he faced a significant challenge from a BJP rebel, B Jha Mrinal, who had also been a serious contender for the BJP ticket.During the campaign, the contest seemed triangular among Congress, BJP and Mrinal, with much of the BJP cadre believed to be backing the rebel candidate.

Yet, in a surprising development, the scenario shifted overnight on polling day, indicating a straight fight between the BJP and Congress. Vinod Narain Jha has defeated Congress’s Nalini Ranjan Jha by 23,932 votes. Jha had earlier won the seat in 2020 by more than 40,000 votes, defeating Congress candidate Bhawna Jha.Another surprising outcome emerged in Bisfi, where BJP incumbent Hari Bhushan Thakur Bachaul lost to RJD’s Asif Ahmad by a margin of 8,107 votes.

Bisfi, with a significant Muslim population, has historically witnessed clear polarisation of votes. This time, however, the presence of Jan Suraaj candidate Sanjay Kumar Mishra, a Maithili Brahmin, appears to have cut into the BJP vote base, affecting Bachaul’s prospects.In Rajnagar (SC), BJP’s Sujeet Kumar defeated RJD’s Bishnu Deo Mochi by 42,185 votes.Minister Sheela Mandal of JD(U), seeking re-election from Phulparas, initially faced a tough contest from district Congress chief Subodh Mandal. She, however, won the seat by 14,099 votes.