Jharkhand oppn finds achievement in defeat

Jamshedpur, Feb 17 (PTI) After the defeat of itscandidate against Jharkhand Chief Minister, the NationalJharkhandi Alliance today said the outcome of the Kharswanby-poll was an achievement for the opposition camp as thewinning margin Arjun Munda has decreased.

Munda had won the last Assembly election from Kharswanin 2005 by over 52,000 votes, while this time his winningmargin was only over 17000, Convenor of National JharkhandiAlliance Surya Singh Besra said.

"Our consensus candidate, Dasrath Gagrai of JharkhandVikas Morcha (Prajatantrik), garnered 44,355 votes while Mundagot 61,801 votes," said Besra, who is also the president ofJharkhand People''s Party (JPP).

One should keep in mind that Munda represented thesame Kharswan seat thrice on the trot since 1995, he said.

Mangal Singh Soy, the Kharswan MLA who vacated theseat for Munda, had won by a margin of 27,000 votes in 2009.

"It is also an achievement for us that the oppositionexhibited unity at an appropriate time," he said.

"The result of the by-election proved our allegationthat the ruling party''s Mudra (money) emerged victorious overMudda (issues)," he claimed.