RJD made dent in BJP's core vote bank: Tejashwi Yadav on party's defeat in Gopalganj bypolls

Patna (Bihar) [India], November 6 : Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Tejashwi Yadav on Sunday said that despite the defeat, the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) made a dent in the BJP's core vote bank after the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidate won the Gopalganj bypoll by a close margin.
"In Gopalganj, where we used to lose by a margin of 40,000 votes in 2020, we lost only by 1,794 votes this time, despite them (BJP) having a sympathy factor... We have made a dent in BJP's core votes. Next time, we will lead by 20,000 votes," Yadav told reporters here.
In the Gopalganj constituency, RJD's Mohan Prasad Gupta was defeated by BJP candidate Kusum Devi with a margin of 1,794 votes despite taking an early lead and witnessing a neck-and-neck fight here.
After the results were announced, Kusum Devi said that she will carry forward the incomplete development works here.
Kusum Devi is the wife of former BJP MLA Subhash Singh. Singh, who held the Gopalganj seat, passed away in August, necessitating the bypolls.
"The entire Gopalganj district is with me. My victory is the victory of everyone. I will carry forward the development work that did not get completed. I was blessed by everyone," BJP's Kusum Devi said after winning the Gopalganj by-election.
Meanwhile, in Mokama assembly by-election in Bihar, RJD candidate Neelam Devi has successfully managed to register her victory with a margin of 16,741 votes.
Mokama has always been a stronghold of Neelam Devi's husband Anant Singh since 2005. The constituency saw a major contest between BJP and RJD as it was the first election that took place after Chief Minister Nitish Kumar parted his ways with BJP and joined hands with RJD and Congress to form a Grand Alliance government, here.
The disqualification of Anant Singh in the Arms Act case had necessitated the by-elections here for which the BJP had fielded Sonam Devi as its candidate who garnered a total of 62,939 votes.
Notably, the bypolls was the first face-off between BJP and Mahagathbandhan ever since it was formed in Bihar as Nitish Kumar took oath for the eighth time here by joining hands with JDU, Congress, and other political parties in the state.
Assembly bye-elections were held in seven vacant seats spread across the states of Maharashtra, Haryana, Bihar, Telangana, Odisha and Uttar Pradesh on November 3.