Turncoats fail at the hustings
Patna (PTI): The Lok Sabha polls are a lesson to the “migratory birds” who failed to make their way to Parliament.
Barring BJP’s Sukhdeo Paswan and Uday Singh and Devendra Prasad Yadav (RJD), prominent political turncoats had to bite the dust. Three-time chief minister of Bihar Jagannath Mishra, whose career seemed doomed following his implication in the fodder scam along with Laloo Prasad Yadav, had to eat humble pie. Mishra, who saw his time ticking away in the NCP, sent feelers to the BJP and the JD(U) with the latter lapping him up to contest from Jhanjharpur. Mishra lost to Devendra Yadav, a four-time MP who joined the RJD weeks before the election.
New Delhi (PTI): Even as a consensus was being evolved on increasing women’s participation in Parliament, only 44 women have been elected to the 14th Lok Sabha, four less than the 1999 elections. According to official statistics released on Tuesday, Uttar Pradesh led the states in the number of women contestants as well as winners. The state, with 80 Lok Sabha seats, had 61 women candidates, seven of whom won. Goa, with two Lok Sabha seats, had one woman among the 16 contestants.
Patna (PTI): The Election Commission on Tuesday ordered the transfer of the deputy inspector general and the superintendent of police of Chhapra, where Lok Sabha polls were countermanded following allegations of rigging by RJD president Laloo Prasad Yadav’s supporters. DIG (Saran range) Ganesh Prasad Yadav and Saran SP Ganesh Kumar have been shifted, police said. Chhapra constituency is part of Saran district. The replacements have not been announced.
Gandhinagar(PTI): Senior Gujarat BJP leaders met at the official residence of chief minister Narendra Modi here on Tuesday to take stock of the party’s poll performance in the state. BJP national treasurer Ramdas Agarwal, former chief minister Keshubhai Patel and state BJP chief Rajendrasinh Rana were among those present.
Mumbai (PTI): Satara constituency registered the highest number of postal votes — 1,919 — in Maharashtra, while the plush South Mumbai constituency recorded the lowest — 15 — in the polls. Kolhapur constituency registered the second largest number of postal votes — 1,810 — followed by Kopargoan, 1,804. Nearly 145 candidates out of the 412 in the fray registered zero postal votes.
