Bihar: Independent Pappu Yadav wins Purnia Lok Sabha seat

Purnea (Bihar): Former MP Rajesh Ranjan alias Pappu Yadav, who contested the Purnea Lok Sabha seat in Bihar as an independent, won the seat by a margin of over 23,000 votes.

Yadav had merged his Jan Adhikar Party (JAP) with Congress ahead of Lok Sabha polls, but his hopes of contesting from Purnea were dashed when ally RJD unilaterally announced the candidature of JD(U) turncoat MLA Bima Bharti.

Bharti finished a distant third and lost her deposit, while Yadav polled 5.67 lakh votes, 23847 more than sitting JD(U) MP, Santosh Kumar. Yadav had represented the seat thrice in the 1990s.