When officials in Bihar were handing over certificates to the candidates that won the panchayat elections, they found that one candidate could not be awarded the certificate because he had already died. But the story gets even crazier.
It was later found that the villagers of Deepkarhar located in the Khaira block purposely voted for him and elected him as part of the candidate's dying wish.
The candidate, Sohan Murmu, died on 6 November, almost a fortnight before the elections. The residents voted for him as a sympathy wave took over the whole village, but it looks like they didn't completely think this through.
One of the authorities explained how the villagers intended to present a united front. "Family members of Murmu, who defeated his rival by 28 votes, said it was the last wish of the deceased, who had been ailing, to win the election. So they kept quiet. No resident of the village informed us either. It appears they all voted in his favour to honour his last wish," said the BDO in a statement to The Times of India.
Another official said that they will have to write to the state election office and submit a request to nullify the results of this poll.
(With inputs from The Times of India).
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