From correspondents in Bihar, India, 11:02 AM IST

Railway Minister Lalu Prasad was leading in both Saran and Patliputra Lok Sabha constituencies of Bihar while veteran socialist leader George Fernandes was trailing in Muzaffarpur as counting of votes for the state's 40 parliamentary seats was underway Saturday.

Counting began simultaneously at 8 a.m. in all district headquarters. After trailing in the early rounds in Saran, Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief Lalu Prasad was leading over his Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) rival Rajiv Pratap Rudy.

Fernandes, who is contesting as an independent after the Janata Dal-United (JD-U) denied him ticket, was trailing behind Jai Narayan Nishad of the JD-U in Muzaffarpur constituency.

(Staff Writer, © IANS)