Patna, Dec 5 (PTI) Voting is underway on Monday for by-poll to Kurhani assembly seat in Bihar's Muzaffarpur district where 3.11 lakh voters will decide the fate of 13 candidates, the election department said.

Polling began, amid tight security, at 7 am across 320 booths in the constituency, all manned by central paramilitary forces besides local police, and will continue till 6 pm.

Also Read | FIFA World Cup 2022 Quarterfinal Schedule in IST: Know Who Play Whom in Last Eight of Football WC.

The assembly segment has been divided into 39 sectors.

The sector magistrates will discharge their duties under the supervision of nine zonal magistrates and one "super zonal magistrate".

Also Read | Gujarat Shocker: Woman Kills Husband With Help of Paramour and His Friend in Junagadh.

The by-poll has been necessitated by the disqualification of RJD MLA Anil Kumar Sahani from the assembly.

Altogether 13 candidates, including five Independents, are in the fray.

The main contenders are former MLAs Kedar Gupta and Manoj Singh Kushwaha, fielded by the BJP and Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's JD(U) respectively.

Others who are in the fray include Mohd Ghulam Murtaza (AIMIM) and Neelabh Kumar (VIP).

Gupta had lost to Sahani, in the 2020 assembly polls, by a slender margin of around 700 votes. In the by-election, the RJD is backing the JD(U).

The counting of votes will take place on December 8.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)