Bihar’s Second Phase Battle: 3.7 crore voters on 122 seats in 20 districts will decide the future of power in Bihar. Seemanchal’s silence, caste equation and Muslim vote bank – in whose favor will the dice tilt?
New Delhi: Bihar Assembly elections 2025 have now reached the crucial juncture. After the first phase of voting, now all eyes are on the second phase. In this phase, voting is going to take place on 122 seats in 20 districts. About 3.7 crore voters will decide in whose hands the key to power in Bihar will go.
Will the power equation of Bihar change in the second phase?
- The results of the first phase may have increased the suspense, but the real contest is about to happen now.
- There are 1,302 candidates in the fray in this phase, of which about 10 percent are women.
- Voting will take place at 45,399 centres, and 1.95 crore men and 1.74 crore women will cast their votes.
- Talking about the 2020 elections, out of these seats, BJP had won 42 seats, RJD 33, JDU 20, Congress 11, and Left 5 seats.
- Now it remains to be seen which direction these figures turn in 2025.
Who has the stronger hold in which area?
- Voting for the second phase is spread across central, western and northern districts of Bihar.
- BJP’s hold has traditionally been strong in Tirhut, Saran and North Mithilanchal.
- At the same time, JDU’s position has been impressive in Bhagalpur region.
- The dominance of the Grand Alliance (RJD-Congress-Left) is visible in the Magadh region, which includes districts like Gaya, Aurangabad, Nawada and Jehanabad.
In whose favor will the silence of Seemanchal go?
- The most discussed area is the Seemanchal area – 24 assembly constituencies of Purnia, Araria, Kishanganj and Katihar.
- This area is considered to be the center of 17 percent Muslim population of Bihar.
- In 2020, AIMIM surprised everyone by winning 5 seats here, although later 4 of its MLAs joined RJD.
- Now the question is whether this time Seemanchal will again decide the direction of power in Bihar?
Caste equation: Who will become the kingmaker?
- Caste mathematics has always been a big factor in Bihar politics.
- In this phase the population of EBC (Extremely Backward Class) is 36%, which can decide the voting trend.
- This traditional vote bank of Nitish Kumar is now an important target for Congress and RJD also.
- Whereas non-Yadav OBC and Dalit voters can play a decisive role for both NDA and Grand Alliance.
Big rallies and silence period: who will do wonders?
Now the promotion is over. From the rallies of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah to Rahul Gandhi’s Voter Adhikar Yatra, all the parties have put in all their strength in the last phase. Now it is the turn of the public, who will write a new chapter of Bihar politics with 3.7 crore votes. The second phase of Bihar elections is not just counting of votes, but a decisive battle of Seemanchal vs Magadh, EBC vs Yadav equation, and development vs caste politics. Now it remains to be seen who will turn the tables in this battle and who will become the new winner of Bihar.