Congress spoils fourth front party in Bihar

Humiliated by its once powerful and trusted ally, RJD chief Lalu Prasad, who jettisoned it and sew up an alliance with Union minister Ramvilas Paswan's LJP for the lok sabha elections, the Congress spoiled their party in as many as 12 seats in Bihar.     
The Congress' attempt to step out of the towering shadow of the RJD supremo, saw the party contest 37 of Bihar's 40 seats and emerge victorious in two, one down from the last lok sabha elections when it fought for four and won three.     

However, as the Congress appeared to have decided to come on its own, the party doomed the electoral fortunes of the fourth front, constituted just before the elections comprising RJD, LJP and Samajwadi Party of Mulayam Singh Yadav in 12 seats, including Madhubani, Banka and Karakat where three Union ministers had to bite the dust.     

The Madhubani seat was won by BJP's Hukumdeo Narain Yadav, himself a former Union minister, by a margin of 9927 votes defeating state RJD president Abdul Bari Siddiqui.     

While Yadav polled 1,62,192 votes, Siddiqui got 152,265. Union minister of state for Home and sitting Congress MP Shakeel Ahmed finished third with 111,423 votes, which if coupled with RJD's 152,265, would have seen Siddiqui sail through easily.