The ruling NDA is heading towards a landslide victory in the Bihar assembly polls, poised to win over 200 seats. The BJP is set to emerge as the single-largest party, while its ally JD(U) has also secured significant leads and wins.
NDA Heads for Landslide Victory
The ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA) is heading towards a landslide victory in the Bihar assembly polls, with the latest trends showing that it is poised to win over 200 seats.
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is poised to emerge as the single-largest party in the Bihar assembly and has so far won 16 seats. It is leading in 75 constituencies. The Janata Dal (United) has won 10 seats and is leading in 74 constituencies. BJP and JD-U supporters celebrated the NDA’s victory in Patna by distributing sweets.
Counting began this morning, and the NDA established its lead from the start in the election trends.
Party-Wise Performance
NDA Allies and Opposition Tally
Apart from the BJP and JD (U), other constituents of the NDA also registered impressive strike rates. LJP (Ram Vilas) has won one seat each and is leading in 19, Hindustan Awam Morcha has won one seat and is leading in four seats and RLM is leading in four seats.
The opposition Mahagathbandhan has suffered huge losses. RJD has won four seats and is leading in 21, Congress has won one seat and is leading on four, CPI(ML) Liberation is leading in two, and CPI(M) is ahead on one seat while VIP and CPI have drawn a blank so far.
Key Contests and Other Parties
Amid the battering, there is some consolation for the RJD as its leader and Mahagathbandhan’s Chief Ministerial candidate, Tejashwi Prasad Yadav, is now leading from Raghopur by over 11,000 votes. He was earlier trailing in the seat.
Among other parties, AIMIM has won two seats and is leading in three, and the Bahujan Samaj Party is leading on one seat
Leaders React to Mandate
NDA Leaders Hail Development Agenda
Expressing happiness over the NDA victory, BJP leader Ravi Shankar Prasad praised the people of Bihar for transcending “caste and community boundaries”. “Congratulations to the people of Bihar. The way they have risen above the boundaries of caste and community to cast their votes is a vote of hope and trust. The public has seen the work done by Nitish Kumar. They also remember and have seen Lalu Prasad’s jungle raj. I am proud that our Bihar has stood up to walk on the path of development,” he said.
Union Minister and JD-U leader Rajiv Ranjan (Lalan) Singh said that people have given their stamp of approval to the development being carried out in the state and to accelerating its pace over the next five years. “Nitish Kumar is a tiger. The results have made it clear that the NDA was contesting this election under the leadership of Nitish Kumar, and the public has given them a huge mandate because of his work,” he said.
Another JD-U leader, Lovely Anand, said they were expecting this victory “because we have worked for the people and for Bihar’s development”. “Women came out in huge numbers to vote in this election. This victory is the result of Nitish Kumar and PM Modi’s efforts to promote Bihar’s growth. The opposition has alleged vote theft, but people have rejected their claims and chosen law and order and development in Bihar above all.”
Congress Alleges Foul Play
Congress leader Digvijaya Singh expressed surprise at the results. “My suspicion turned out to be true. This whole game is of manipulated voter lists and manipulated EVMs,” he alleged.
Bihar Records Historic Voter Turnout
Bihar went to the polls in two phases. The state recorded a historic 67.13% voter turnout, the highest since 1951, with women voters outnumbering men by a huge 8.8 per cent.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by Asianet Newsable English staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)