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Bihar assembly elections 2020: JD(U) looks to retain Benipur as triangular contest looms
The chief minister Nitish Kumar-led JD(U) has fielded Binay Kumar Choudhary from Benipur instead of sitting MLA Sunil Choudhary. Congress’ Mithilesh Choudhary and LJP’s Kamal Ram Vinod Jha are also contesting from this assembly constituency.
Benipur is among the 94 assembly constituencies which will go to polls in the second of the three-phase Bihar assembly elections on November 3. It is in Bihar’s Darbhanga district and falls under the Darbhanga parliamentary constituency.
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The sitting MLA from the Benipur assembly constituency is Sunil Chaodhary from Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar’s Janata Dal(United). Meanwhile, the incumbent Lok Sabha MP from the Darbhanga constituency is Gopal Jee Thakur of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
In the 2015 assembly polls, Choudhary had emerged victorious over Thakur from Benipur. The constituency had witnessed a turnout of more than 55%, with 148,328 voters out of 266,586 casting their votes. Of these, while Choudhary won nearly 47% or 69,511 votes, Thakur secured 43,068 or 29.04% votes. Thakur had won this seat in the 2010 polls.
Read: JD(U) eyes Phulparas seat for third straight term
For the ongoing polls, the JD(U) has fielded Binay Kumar Choudhary. Meanwhile, the Congress, Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) and Rashtriya Lok Samta Party (RLSP) have fielded Mithilesh Choudhary, Kamal Ram Vinod Jha and Rajiv Kumar respectively.
The Bihar 2020 Bihar assembly polls kicked off with the first phase of polling on October 28, with 71 of the state’s 243 assembly constituencies going to polls. 78, meanwhile, will vote in the third and final phase on November 7. Counting of votes will take place on November 10.
Read: BJP’s Nitish Mishra seeks to win Jhanjharpur seat for the 4th time
Bihar CM Nitish Kumar is the chief ministerial candidate of the state’s ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA), which comprises, among others, the BJP and the Kumar-led JD(U). Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader Tejashwi Tadav is the candidate for the state’s top post for the opposition Mahagathbandhan, which also comprises the Congress and the Left parties.
