Congress Wins Both Lok Sabha Seats In Violence-Hit Manipur

In a significant political development, the Congress candidates wrested both the Lok Sabha seats in Manipur from the ruling BJP and its ally Naga People's Front (NPF) on Saturday.

Defying last week's exit poll predictions, the Congress-led INDIA bloc gave tough competition to the incumbent BJP-led NDA government. However, the BJP-led NDA is ahead on 292 seats and is set to form government from a third consecutive term.

At least four BJP leaders have recorded the highest victory margin in the Lok Sabha polls, with Indore MP Shankar Lalwani winning with a margin of over 11.72 lakh votes.

BJP candidate Dilip Ghosh, the previous West Bengal state president of the saffron party, was defeated in Bardhaman-Durgapur Lok Sabha constituency by a margin of 1,37,981 votes, the Election Commission said on Tuesday.

The Congress, though short of its expected seats, is buoyed by what they said was the key takeaway of this election: A people's mandate that was a victory for democracy and defeat for Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

He polled 9,23,302 votes while his Congress rival received 3,82,373 votes, the Election Commission data showed.