Rupauli Assembly Bypoll Result 2024: Who Is Shankar Singh, Independent Candidate Who Defeated JD(U)'s Kaladhar Mandal?

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Rupauli Bye-Election Result 2024: It was all going well for the JDU till this noon as the party's candidate Kaladhar Prasad Mandal was leading from the Rupauli assembly seat in Siwan. Mandal was facing a stiff challenge from Bima Bharti, a former JDU MLA who quit the party to join the RJD and contest Lok Sabha polls from Siwan. After losing the Lok Sabha polls to independent candidate Pappu Yadav, Bharti was back in the assembly bypoll battle on the RJD ticket.

It was looking like that the JDU would retain the seat but things took an astonishing turn with independent candidate Shankar Singh taking a lead over both - Mandal and Bharti. Singh gradually solidified his leads and marched towards the victory, giving a jolt to the JDU.

Who Is Shankar Singh?

Shankar Singh is a former Bihar MLA who represented the seat between February 2005 and November 2005 on the Lok Janshakti Party. 

Singh, the leader of the North Bihar Liberation Army, has played a crucial role in the political dynamics of the region. In 2000, he took over from the militia's founder, Butan Singh, who was killed by unidentified attackers in the Purnea court. Singh's leadership has been notable for the militia's involvement in various activities such as voter intimidation and booth capturing.

Regarding the Rupauli bypoll election, the competition was expected to be between the JD(U)'s Kaladhar Prasad Mandal and RJD's Bima Bharti. However, Singh came out of the syllabus for the two. The by-election was triggered by the resignation of Bima Bharti, who had previously secured the seat for JD(U) multiple times. Bharti left Nitish Kumar's party before the General Elections to run for Parliament on an RJD ticket. After losing in the Lok Sabha elections, she is now contesting the bypoll as an RJD candidate.