NDA leads in Bihar

The NDA won nine seats in Bihar and was leading in 22 more constituencies as officials Friday counted the votes polled in the elections for the state's 40 Lok Sabha seats.

The United Progressive Alliance was ahead in seven seats and the ruling Janata Dal-United led in only two seats.

Candidates of the Bharatiya Janata Party and its allies Lok Janshakti Party and Rashtriya Lok Samata Party won Gaya, Siwan, Begusarai, Sheohar, East Champaran, West Champaran, Patna Saheb, Sasaram, and Nawada while forging ahead in Saran, Patliputra, Jehanabad, Valmikinagar, Khagaria, Hajipur, Madhubani, Jhanjharpur, Ara, Karakat, Munger, Maharajganj, Aurangabad, Muzaffarpur, Gopalganj, Jamui, Banka, Buxar and Ujiyarpur.

The Congress won Kishanganj and Supaul seats, its ally Nationalist Congress Party was leading in Katihar and the Rashtriya Janata Dal won Araria seat and led in Bhagalpur and Madhepura seats.

LJP chief Ram Vilas Paswan was ahead of JD-U candidate and sitting MP Ram Sunder Das in Hajipur, and his actor-turned-politician son Chirag Paswan was ahead of Bihar assembly Speaker and JD-U candidate Udai Narain Choudhary in Jamui.

Rashtriya Janata Dal chief Lalu Prasad's wife and former chief minister Rabri Devi trailed in Saran seat, while his daughter Misha Bharti also trailed in Pataliputra.

JD-U president Sharad Yadav also trailed in Madhepura.

Lok Sabha Speaker and Congress candidate Meira Kumar lost from her traditional Sasaram constituency, while former Kerala govenor and Congress candidate Nikhil Kumar trailed in Aurangabad.

Actor-turned-politician and sitting Patna Saheb MP Shatrughan Sinha (BJP) retained his seat by more than one lakh votes over Congress candidate Kunal Singh, but former union minister and BJP candidate Shahnawaz Hussain trailed in Bhagalpur.

In 2009, the NDA won 32 seats - the BJP 12 and JD-U 20. Now both parties are contesting by themselves. The Congress won two seats and the RJD four seats. Two seats were won by Independents.