BJP retains Tharali Assembly seat in U'khand

BJP which suffered bypoll losses in neighbouring Uttar Pradesh today had the consolation of retaining the Tharali Assembly seat in Uttarakhand with its candidate Munni Devi Shah defeating nearest rival former Congress MLA Jeetram by over 1,900 votes.

Though the exact victory margin was yet to be announced, officials here confirmed that the BJP candidate Munni Devi had won by over 1,900 votes.

The BJP 's victory in Tharali, where the fight was close, takes its tally in the 70-member Uttarakhand Assembly to 57.

The bypoll to the reserved seat was held on May 28 following the untimely death of sitting MLA Maganlal Shah whose widow was fielded by the BJP.

Soon after the bypoll result was out, Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat attributed the party's victory at the reserved (SC) seat to the hard work of cadres at the grassroots who could take the vision of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the people.

"Though every electoral victory is the result of a combination of factors, I would attribute it primarily to the hard work of party workers at the grassroots who were able to take the Prime Minister's vision to every household. They were able to convey to the electorate how the PM thinks about the poor, his vision for them as reflected in schemes like the Ujjwala or Jan Dhan Yojana," the chief minister said.

State Congress chief Pritam Singh saidthe party accepted the verdict of the people.

"We honour what the people of Tharali have decreed. We shall analyse the factors which led to our defeat but we are happy that we put up a good fight," he told reporters.