Ramgarh (Jharkhand), Feb 10 (PTI) A total of 18 candidates, including 14 independent nominees, will contest for the upcoming Ramgarh by-poll, an official said.

By-election to the seat, which fell vacant after the disqualification of Congress legislator Mamta Devi, will be held on February 27.

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Returning Officer Md Javed Hussain said that during scrutiny, 18 out of 20 nominations were found to be valid.

The nomination process began on January 31 and concluded on February 7.

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The counting of votes will take place on March 2.

Congress leader Bajrang Kumar Mahto, who is the husband of Mamta Devi, had filed his nomination as the UPA candidate for the Ramgarh by-poll earlier this week.

He will lock horns with NDA nominee and AJSU Party leader Sunita Choudhary.

In December 2022, a special MP/MLA court in Hazaribag had sentenced Mamata Devi and 12 others to jail for five years in a case of violence registered in 2016.

(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)