By IANS
Nagpur : Nanda Lohbare of the Shiv Sena Monday won the bloodied Nagpur district council bye-election for the Tarsa-Nimkheda constituency, defeating Laxman Umale of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP).
The bye-election in the village council constituency, about 35 km from Nagpur city, was necessitated by the murder of Nanda’s husband and sitting council member Gopal Lohbare last August.
While the poll was held Sunday, the vote count was done Monday. Nanda won by a margin of 3,424 votes.
The volatile election campaign had reached a flash point Friday when local Congress leader and former district council vice-president Dnyaneshwar Sathwane was lynched by an irate mob, allegedly comprising Shiv Sena workers who first upstaged a meeting being addressed by Public Works Minister Anil Deshmukh.
The attackers suspected Sathawane was responsible for Lohbare’s muder as he was connected with the people accused of Lohbare’s murder. The attack led to Sathawane being lynched.
Sunday’s election, which saw an impressive voter turnout of over 70 percent, and the counting of votes Monday were held under unprecedented police vigil even as 25 people were arrested for their involvement in Sathwane’s murder.