PATNA: In a bizarre revelation during the legislative council by-election for the Tirhut Graduate constituency in Bihar, an individual named Munna Kumar has been listed as the father of 138 voters across different age groups and genders. The by-election, held on Thursday, covered 197 polling booths across four districts—Sitamarhi, Sheohar, Muzaffarpur, and Vaishali—and recorded a voter turnout of 47.50%, an increase from 45.20% in 2020.
According to officials, this anomaly was discovered under the Aurai block in Muzaffarpur district, where multiple voters were listed with Munna Kumar as their father. Tirhut Divisional Commissioner Sarvana M. stated, “I will investigate the matter after the elections conclude. This appears to be a human error, but it should have been rectified during the verification process before publishing the final voter list.” He added that strict disciplinary action would be taken against those responsible.
Despite the irregularity, officials confirmed that it would not affect the overall voting process.
The by-election was necessitated by the election of sitting MLC Devesh Chandra Thakur as a Member of Parliament from the Sitamarhi Lok Sabha seat in the recent parliamentary elections. A total of 1.54 lakh voters were eligible to decide the fate of 18 candidates in the fray. Prominent contenders include Abhishek Jha from the JD(U), Gopi Kishan from the RJD, and Dr. Vinayak Gautam of Prashant Kishor’s Jan Suraaj Party, who is the grandson of former minister Raghunath Pandey.
Reacting to the anomaly, JD(U) candidate Abhishek Jha expressed disbelief. “It’s unbelievable. How can voters of different ages, genders, and religious affiliations have the same person listed as their father?” he questioned.
Independent candidate Bansi Dhar Brijwasi revealed that he had already brought the issue to the attention of senior administrative officials. “They assured me that the matter would be looked into after the elections,” he said.
The by-election, which passed off peacefully, is set to conclude with the announcement of results on December 9.