Sadhu Yadav assaults candidate, poll postponed

A fresh date would be announced in consultation with the state election commission.

RJD president Lalu Prasad's high-profile brother-in-law Sadhu Yadav on Thursday courted yet another controversy by assaulting a candidate for the post of chief of block development committee.

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This prompted the Gopalganj district authorities to postpone the election and bar him from entering the district.

Sadhu, the Lok Sabha member from Gopalganj, assaulted the candidate, Dinesh Sah, after the latter refused to withdraw from the fray in favour of Lalu's sister-in-law (wife of his elder brother Gulab Rai), Kunti Devi, also an aspirant for the post of Phulwaria block development committee chief, District Magistrate Murlidhar Rai said.

Rai said that he had postponed the election for the post and a fresh date would be announced in consultation with the state election commission.

The district magistrate said that though the victim had not yet filed an FIR so far, a case would be instituted against Sadhu Yadav soon. "If the victim does not register a case it would be done by an executive magistrate," he said.

The DM said superintendent of police of neighbouring Siwan district, who is in-charge of Gopalganj, has been asked to immediately withdraw the commandos provided to Sadhu Yadav.

Besides, orders have been issued to debar him from the limits of Gopalganj district, he said.