Tejashwi Yadav Trails in RJD Stronghold Raghopur as Bihar Election Results Unfold

Tejashwi Yadav, the Chief Ministerial candidate of the Opposition's Mahagathbandhan, is currently trailing in his family stronghold of Raghopur, as the contest has developed into a nail-biting affair. After five and a half hours of vote counting, Tejashwi finds himself behind by more than 2,000 votes.

The counting of votes for the high-stakes Bihar Assembly elections is underway today, with the 36-year-old RJD leader having expressed confidence that the Opposition alliance would form the government. Earlier today, he told reporters, "It will be a people's victory. Change will come. We are forming the government."

Raghopur has traditionally been an RJD stronghold. In previous years, both Tejashwi's father and RJD founder Lalu Prasad Yadav and his mother Rabri Devi have represented this constituency. Tejashwi has held the seat since 2015, winning the 2020 election with an impressive margin of over 38,000 votes.

For this election cycle, the BJP has nominated Satish Kumar Yadav as its candidate for Raghopur. Notably, Yadav previously defeated Rabri Devi in the 2010 election when he ran as a JDU candidate. Prashant Kishor's Jan Suraaj Party has also fielded a candidate in this constituency.

In an interesting development, one of Tejashwi Yadav's challengers is Prem Kumar from Janshakti Janata Dal, a political party founded by Tejashwi's estranged brother Tej Pratap Yadav.

Raghopur consistently draws attention during elections as it's considered the RJD's most secure seat, typically reserved for the party's leading figure. This election season, political strategist Prashant Kishor created speculation when he suggested he might contest from Raghopur. However, he later announced that Jan Suraaj leadership had decided he should focus on the statewide campaign rather than contesting personally.