JORHAT, May 20 - Congress MLA Rupjyoti Kurmi won the Mariani seat for the third consecutive term by a margin of 1,793 votes, defeating his nearest rival, Alok Kumar Ghosh of the NCP.
Kurmi got 36,701 votes, while Ghosh got 34,908 votes. However, BJP candidate Dulen Nayak got only 14,602 votes in the constituency.
After his victory, Rupjyoti paid his gratitude to the voters of the constituency.
Asked about the victory of Kurmi even during the toughest period of the Congress, several voters from different tea gardens of Mariani said that they loved his simplicity and active participation in solving the common problems of their localities.
�When we need him during difficult times, he is always beside us. Voters like his simplicity,� said a young voter of a tea garden. Rupjyoti has been winning the Mariani seat since 2006.
