BJP's Chandrabhanu Paswan defeats SP candidate by over 61,000 votes in Milkipur bypoll
Ayodhya (UP), Feb 8 (PTI): BJP candidate Chandrabhanu Paswan on Saturday won the Milkipur bypolls by a margin of 61,710 votes, according to the Election Commission website.
While Paswan, 38, polled over 1.46 lakh votes, his nearest rival Samajwadi Party's Ajit Prasad, 42, garnered 84,687 votes, it said.
After 31 rounds of counting, Paswan with 1,46,397 votes registered a win.
With the BJP winning the Milkipur (SC) seat, all five assembly segments of the Faizabad Lok Sabha constituency are in the BJP's kitty.
The other assembly segments are Rudauli, Bikapur and Ayodhya in Ayodhya district and Rudauli assembly segment of Barabanki district.
Milkipur was the only seat the BJP lost in Ayodhya district in the 2022 Assembly polls.
Santosh Kumar of the Aazad Samaj Party (Kanshi Ram) stood a distant third and got 5,459 votes.
The Milkipur bypoll was necessitated after local MLA Awadhesh Prasad vacated the seat following his Faizabad win in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.
The SP fielded his son Ajit Prasad in the bypoll even as the BJP opted for a party cadre Paswan, both from the Pasi community.
While the SP was anxious to retain the seat it won in the 2022 UP polls, the BJP was anxious to avenge its Faizabad loss that had happened within five months of the high-profile consecration of Ram temple at Ayodhya.
The BSP did not contest the bypoll while the Congress backed its alliance partner SP.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath congratulated party workers for the "historic victory" of the BJP in the Milkipur bypoll.
In a post on X in Hindi, Adityanath said, "Heartiest congratulations to all the dedicated party officials and hard-working workers for the historic victory of Bharatiya Janata Party in the byelection of Milkipur Legislative Assembly seat!"
"This victory is a symbol of the unwavering faith of the common people in the public welfare policies of the 'Double Engine BJP government' led by Honourable Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the UP government dedicated to service, security and good governance," he said.
"Congratulations to the winning candidate Chandrabhanu Paswan and hearty greetings to the people of Milkipur Assembly constituency who gave their votes to the development journey and good governance of Uttar Pradesh! Jai Shri Ram!" the CM said.
Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya in a post on X, said, "Hearty congratulations to the newly elected Hon'ble MLA of BJP Shri Chandrabhanu Paswan ji along with the national and state leadership on the massive victory of BJP in the Milkipur Assembly byelection-2025 in Uttar Pradesh and best wishes for a bright tenure."
"This victory is a result of the BJP government's poor welfare schemes, the working style of the organisation and the people's unwavering faith in Hon'ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi," Maurya said.
Deputy Chief Minister Brajesh Pathak also congratulated the party's winning candidate on his "historic" win.
UP BJP chief Bhupendra Singh Chaudhary too congratulated Paswan on his "comprehensive win".
SP chief Akhilesh Yadav on the other hand accused the BJP of "misusing" the electoral machinery to win elections.
"The true victory of PDA (Picchda, Dalit, Alpsankhyak) in Ayodhya in the Lok Sabha elections is many times greater than their false victory in the Milkipur Assembly and will always be so," Yadav said in a post on X.
"The BJP cannot face the growing power of PDA based on votes, which is why it tries to win by misusing the electoral machinery. The level of manipulation of officials required to carry out such electoral fraud may be possible in one assembly constituency but this 'chaar sau beesee' (apparently referring to cheating) will not work in 403 assembly constituencies," Yadav said.
He claimed that the BJP members also know this which is why they postponed the Milkipur bypoll.
"This is a false victory which the BJP will never be able to celebrate if they look into their own eyes in the mirror. Their guilt and the fear of future defeat will keep them awake," Yadav said.
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Bihar: Over 150 children fall ill after consuming 'mid-day meal' in Saharsa
Saharsa (PTI): More than 150 children were taken ill after allegedly consuming food that was part of the mid-day meal in a school in Bihar’s Saharsa district, a senior official said on Thursday.
The incident occurred at a middle school in Baluaha village of the district.
The official said that 115 children were undergoing treatment at the Sadar Hospital, while around 50 students were admitted to Mahishi Public Health Centre.
“We received information that several children fell ill after consuming the mid-day meal in Baluaha. The children were initially treated at the primary health centre, but later, many were referred to the Sadar Hospital,” Saharsa District Magistrate Deepesh Kumar told reporters.
“According to doctors, the health condition of the children has improved, but they will be kept under observation for some time. There is no need to panic. Some kids are having mild fever. They are being treated accordingly,” Kumar said.
Meanwhile, family members of some children claimed that a snake was found in the container in which cooked pulses was stored at the school.
Of the 545 students present in the school, 200 had already eaten their meals by the time the snake was spotted, and later complained of stomach ache and vomiting, they said.
Regarding the claims, the DM said food samples have been collected from the school.
“We will be able to comment on this only after the results of the tested samples arrive,” he said.
