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BJP won 72 seats while Nitish Kumar only managed 42
- The ruling JDU-BJP hit the majority mark around 3 a.m. after a close race with the mahagathbandhan led by Tejashwi Yadav of the RJD. By 3:17 a.m., the BJP had won 72 seats and the JDU 42, with the two parties leading the last three undeclared seats. The two smaller members – Hindustani Awam Morcha (secular) of former chief minister Jitan Ram Manjhi and the Vikassheel Insaan party – each won four seats. The BJP is now the big brother of its relationship with the JDU – which it never was and which could impact the choice of chief minister, with some party leaders in the state feeling that Nitish Kumar can no longer speak.
- The opposition started the day well, quickly taking the lead before being caught up and revised by the BJP. Tejashwi Yadav, whose RJD campaign leadership announced him as a worthy successor to the throne of his father Lalu Yadav, produced a perfect score for his party – 75 seats contested, 75 seats won. In contrast, Congress, which many have suggested was responsible for the opposition’s failure, won only 19 of 70 seats; eight fewer than in 2015. The three left-wing parties together claimed 16 seats, including 12 in the CPI (Marxist-Leninist).
- Shortly before the results were confirmed, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Interior Minister Amit Shah both tweeted and thanked the people of Bihar for “their support for the NDA’s development agenda.” Prime Minister Modi said the NDA will “work for the balanced development of every person, every region” of the state. Mr Shah said: “Every section of Bihar has … supported the development program of the NDA” and added: “This is a victory for the twin-engine development of PM Modi and Nitish Kumar”.
- Late Tuesday evening, the RJD and Congress accused Nitish Kumar and his deputy, BJP Sushil Modi, of ordering district and election officials to favor the JDU-BJP in close contests. The Election Commission, to which the opposition said it would complain, dismissed the allegations and said the results were only delayed because of the additional measures in place during the coronavirus lockdown.
- The results leave Nitish Kumar’s dreams of a sixth term as chief minister in the hands of the BJP. As the elections approach and throughout the campaign, the party has repeatedly stated that Nitish Kumar will continue to hold the leadership post if the NDA retains power, regardless of the performance of the respective parties. It’s no secret that some of the party leadership would rather see Nitish Kumar come out – and these results give them more ammunition. The JDU has already fired a warning shot – party leader KC Tyagi reminded the BJP of its promise and stressed that the BJP needs the support of the JDU to form the government.
- The campaign for Bihar’s polls has been fierce and relentless, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Nitish Kumar and Yogi Adityanath (his UP counterpart) and BJP chairman JP Nadda among the big names in action for the NDA. For the opposition, Tejashwi Yadav often seemed to be the only voice in the attack; Rahul Gandhi addressed a handful of rallies, but no one else from Congress made an appearance in Bihar.
- The election highlighted growing cracks in the JDU-BJP relationship. The apparent distancing sparked beards from the opposition, with both Tejashwi Yadav and LJP’s Chirag Paswan leaping up. The BJP’s treatment of Mr. Paswan infuriated Mr. Kumar even more; the LJP broke away from the NDA to argue independently and relentlessly targeted it. JDU leaders felt this was happening with the tacit approval of the BJP because Mr. Paswan was seen as an effective counterweight to Nitish Kumar and a way to keep him in check.
- The campaign’s troubles have largely focused on unemployment, with Mr Yadav’s offer of 10 lakh government jobs striking a chord. This claim has made Nitish Kumar visibly angered on numerous occasions, with the chief minister attacking an “inexperienced” Tejashwi Yadav and making personal remarks about Lalu Yadav. On one occasion, Mr. Kumar was thrown onions. Still, the jobs gambit was good enough that the BJP jumped on board and promised 19 lakh jobs, much to Nitish Kumar’s chagrin.
- Besides the good performance of the left parties and the eight seats won by the smaller allies of the NDA, the other winner was Asaduddin Owaisi’s AIMIM, who won five seats. Mr. Owaisi was asked, while it was still possible for the opposition to form the government, if he would help with such efforts. He said: “We won’t decide who to support until after the last vote has been counted. We believe in supporting a truly secular party.”
- The results of elections in Bihar – the country’s biggest political exercise amid the coronavirus pandemic – have been delayed due to restrictions and measures related to Covid, the electoral commission said on Tuesday. These measures included a 63% increase in EVDs and nearly double the number of voting booths – from 65,000 in 2015 to 1.02 lakh this year. The election itself saw other restrictions, including limitations on the number of people allowed at each booth and an additional hour of voting.
