Ruling JD(U) retains Kalyanpur in Bihar

PATNA: The ruling JD(U) has won the by-election to the Kalyanpur assembly seat in Bihar inflicting yet another blow to the Lalu—Ram vilas duo whose run of bad luck at the hustings has refused to take a breather.

While a win for the RJD backed LJP nominee Rekha Paswan would have done a world to their political fortunes , both Lalu and the LJP chief Ram Vilas Paswan will now have to settle for a defeat leaving the ruling JD(U) on a new high .

The JD( U) nominee Manju Kumar trounced the LJP candidate Manju Kumari by a margin of over 16000 votes , certainly a big margin considering the fact the polling was rather low on day of voting .

The outcome of Kalyanpur will be interpreted very differently for a beleaguered Lalu who was expected to upset the applecart of the JD(U) but that was not to be.

The fact that people were now turning up at Lalu’s public meetings led many to believe that he was on a retrieval path , and ready to stage a comeback . But it seems Lalu will have to settle for a more prolonged wait much in the hope of retrieving the lost political ground in Bihar .