Finance
In a historic and decisive mandate that paved the way for Nitish Kumar’s tenth term as Chief Minister, Bihar returned the ruling NDA to power in a landslide Friday in the Assembly elections, decimating the Opposition Mahagathbandhan and strengthening the BJP’s hand at the Centre ahead of electoral battles in some key states next year.
With the NDA surpassing 200 seats in a House of 243, the mandate appeared to be similar to that of 2010, when the JD(U)-BJP combination was swept back to power with 206 seats and Nitish became Chief Minister for the third time.
The Mahagathbandhan, which included the RJD, Congress, and three Left parties, suffered a severe defeat, significantly reducing the Opposition’s space in the House. Until late night, its total was roughly 35 seats.
Hailing the “prachand jeet” (massive victory) of the NDA and invoking “Chhathi Maiya”, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, addressing BJP workers at the party headquarters in New Delhi, said Bihar had voted for development and progress and had destroyed the “communal MY formula” of the “jungle raj” party – a reference to the RJD and its Muslim-Yadav core base.
Modi described the verdict as “a victory for democracy” and “victory of good governance, development, public welfare and social justice” and pledged to work with renewed vigour for the state’s progress.
Reiterating that “the katta sarkar will never return to Bihar… people of Bihar have voted for viksit Bihar”, Modi sent Mamata Banerjee’s TMC government in West Bengal, where elections are to be held next year, a clear warning: “Gangaji Bihar se behati hui, Bangal tak pahunchti hai. Bihar ne Bangal mai BJP ki vijay ka raasta bhi bana diya hai (The Ganga flows to Bengal via Bihar. Bihar has paved the way for a BJP victory in Bengal). I want to assure the people of Bengal: The BJP will, with your support, uproot the jungle raj from West Bengal.”
And in first remarks, Nitish underlined the “complete unity” among NDA partners, thanked voters and expressed gratitude to Prime Minister Modi, LJP (Ram Vilas), RLM and HAM. He said Bihar will now progress even further with the support of all NDA members.
“People of the state have expressed their confidence in our government by giving us a massive mandate in the polls. For this, I bow to all the esteemed voters of the state, and express my heartfelt gratitude and thanks,” he said in a post on X.
He also expressed gratitude to Prime Minister Modi for his support. “The NDA alliance is set to achieve a massive majority in this election by demonstrating complete unity. For this, thanks and gratitude are also due to all the partners of the NDA alliance – Chirag Paswan Ji, Jitan Ram Manjhi Ji and Upendra Kushwaha Ji. With the support of all of you, Bihar will progress even further and will be included in the category of the most developed states in the country,” he said.
Chirag Paswan expressed his absolute belief that Nitish would stay Chief Minister. He blamed the Opposition alliance’s “arrogance” for their “humiliating loss” and said the people’s “faith in the unity of NDA partners” was the cause for their convincing victory.
Nitish, who has faced voter fatigue and worries about his shifting political alliances, says the mandate indicates a noticeable shift on the ground, showing that voters are once again trusting his administration style, which includes a combination of labharthi programs and doles.
The NDA received 46.52% of the vote, far outpacing the Mahagathbandhan’s 37.64%. Within the NDA, the BJP received 20.08% of the votes, followed by the JD(U) with 19.26%, the LJP (RV) with 4.97%, the HAM (S) with 1.18%, and the RLM with 1.03%. In the Mahagathbandhan, the RJD received 23% of the votes, the Congress 8.71%, the Left parties 4.18%, the VIP 1.38%, and the IIP 0.37%.
In the 2020 Assembly elections, the Mahagathbandhan narrowly defeated the NDA in terms of vote share (38.75% versus 37.26%). In the Mahagathbandhan, the RJD received 23.11% of the votes, followed by the Congress (9.48%) and the Left parties (4.64%). In the NDA, the BJP led with 19.46% of the vote, followed by the JD(U) with 15.39%, the HAM (S) with 0.89%, and the VIP – then an NDA constituent – with 1.52%. That year, the then-undivided LJP and RLM ran independent campaigns, earning 5.66% and 1.77% of the vote, respectively.
Dynamics within the NDA may shift this time if the BJP becomes more proactive. However, the JD(U)’s role as an ally at the Centre, with 12 MPs, may limit its success.
According to a JD(U) insider, the BJP, as the alliance’s senior partner with more influence on minor allies than the JD(U), might express itself more in terms of policy decisions, bureaucrat appointments, and gaining stronger portfolios for its ministers.
“This is where Union Minister Rajiv Ranjan Singh and JD(U) national working president Sanjay Kumar Jha will have to come in and ensure there’s balance,” the JD(U) source said.
A BJP leader, however, said: “No such thing is going to happen. Nitish Kumar will be CM again. In 2010, Nitish got 115 seats, just seven short of majority. He could have dumped BJP then but he did not do so.”
Source: IE
