Congress wins Jharkhand’s Lohardaga assembly by-poll

Congress has won the bypoll to the Lohardaga Assembly seat, the result for which was declared on Thursday.

Pradesh Congress Committee president Sukhdeo Bhagat’s victory over AJSU’s Niru Shanti Bhagat comes just as the Raghubar Das-led NDA government is preparing to mark its first anniversary later this month.

While Sukhdeo’s victory was anticipated in the ST-reserved seat, his margin of 23,228 votes was a surprise. The victory is a shot in the arm for the Congress, which lost the support of its alliance partner JMM over Sukhdeo’s candidature.