Bihar: Chairs thrown, fisticuffs fly at RJD rally as Tejashwi Yadav takes stage

Patna: A scuffle broke out between two groups of Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) workers at an election rally for the Simri Bakhtiyarpur Assembly constituency by-poll, in Bihar’s Saharsa on Sunday. RJD chief Tejashwi Yadav was also present at the rally.

RJD workers and supporters threw chairs at each other as the pandemonium broke out at the Bihar election rally today.

The ruckus started as two groups clashed when the public meeting started leading to fisticuffs between the two groups.

Tejashwi Yadav reached the public meeting to address the gathering in support of mahagathbandhan (grand alliance) candidate Zafar Alam. The ruckus started as soon as Tejashwi reached the stage after which the supporters started throwing chairs at each other. 

The police had to resort to lathi-charge in order to control the agitated crowd as violence flared up at the venue. Some people were reportedly injured in the police action. The leaders called for maintaining calm from the stage but their pleas fell on deaf ears amid a chaotic scene. 

The meeting was organised at an educational institute at Simri Bakhtiyarpur. The voting for by-poll in Simri Bakhtiyarpur Assembly seat will be conducted on October 21. 

The Election Commission (EC) last month announced the schedule for byelections at one Parliamentary and five Assembly seats in Bihar. The voting will be conducted in a single phase for Samastipur (SC) Lok Sabha seat, Simri Bakhtiarpur, Daraunda, Nathanagar and Behlar Assembly seats of the state on October 21.