UP assembly bypolls: BJP-ally Apna Dal (S) retains Chhanbey seat

BJP-ally Apna Dal (Sonelal) candidate Rinki Kol on Saturday defeated Samajwadi Party's Kirti Kol to win the bypoll to the Chhanbey (SC) assembly seat here by a margin of 9,587 votes.

While Rinki Kol polled 76,203 votes, Kirti Kol bagged 66,616 votes in a keenly contested electoral battle. Voting for the Chhanbey assembly seat was held on May 10.

The Apna Dal (Sonelal) candidate secured 46.7 per cent of the votes polled, while the SP candidate's vote share stood at 40.82 per cent, according to the Election Commission.

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Congress candidate Ajay Kumar could muster only 1.56 per cent of the votes, a little more than the NOTA share, which stood at 1.51 per cent.

The Bahujan Samaj Party did not field any candidates from the seat. In all, eight candidates were in the fray.

The total votes polled in this assembly constituency was over 1.63 lakh, according to the Election Commission website.

Apna Dal (Sonelal) chief and Union minister Anupriya Patel is the MP from Mirzapur. The Chhanbey seat fell vacant following the death of sitting Apna Dal (Sonelal) MLA Rahul Prakash Kol in February.

Though the bypoll result would not impact the BJP government in Uttar Pradesh as it enjoys more than two-third majority, it is considered important for the political parties ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections as the state sends the highest number of 80 members to Lok Sabha.