Bihar Election Results LIVE: Osama Shahab, Son Of 'Bahubali' Shahabuddin, Leading From Raghunathpur Seat

Osama Shahab, the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) candidate and the son of former Siwan MP and bahubali (strongman), late Mohammad Shahabuddin, is leading from the Raghunathpur constituency, with the counting of votes still being underway for the Bihar Assembly elections. According to the Election Commission's data, Osama is leading with a margin of 3,478 votes.

Janata Dal (United) candidate Vikash Kumar Singh is trailing.

This is the first Assembly election in Bihar since the death of Mohammad Shahabuddin, the gangster-turned-politician convicted in multiple cases, including a double murder. He died in 2021 due to Covid-19-related complications. After serving four terms as an MP, Shahabuddin was disqualified from contesting elections owing to his conviction in a criminal case. Even then, his name was always associated with Siwan.

In the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, Shahabuddin's wife, Heena, contested as an Independent candidate from Siwan after being denied the RJD ticket. She, however, lost the seat to JD(U) candidate Vijaylakshmi Devi.

After the polls, Heena and Osama joined the RJD.

The ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA)-led by the BJP had slammed RJD for giving Osama a ticket, saying the party is "encouraging criminalisation" in politics. The NDA also accused RJD of planning to "bring back" the 'jungle raj' in Bihar. 'Jungle raj' is an apparent reference to the time when Bihar was under the rule of RJD chief Lalu Yadav - former Chief Minister and father of Grand Alliance Chief Ministerial candidate Tejashwi Yadav. The BJP, for years, has been using it to hit out at the Opposition.

According to early leads, the NDA is leading in more than 190 seats - above the majority mark of 122 seats. While the BJP is ahead in 84 seats, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's JD(U) is leading in 74 seats. Union Minister Chirag Paswan's Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) is ahead in 23 seats, Union Minister Jitan Ram Manjhi's Hindustani Awam Morcha in four, and Rajya Sabha MP Upendra Kushwaha's Rashtriya Lok Morcha in four.

The Bihar Assembly election results today will determine whether Nitish Kumar - the state's longest-serving chief minister - will retain his position for the fifth consecutive term.