BJP retains Uttarakhand’s Tharali seat

Uttarakhand’s ruling BJP on Thursday retained the Tharali Assembly
seat in the bypoll. Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) Munni Devi Shah won the seat, defeating her nearest Congress rival Jeet Ram by over 1,900 votes. Soon after announcement of the victory of Munni Devi, the widow of sitting legislator Magan Lal Shah, whose death had necessitated the bypoll, BJP supporters and workers celebrated on the streets. The bypoll on Monday saw 53.43 per cent voting.