With BJP’s strong performance NDA returns to power in Bihar
   Date :12-Nov-2020

JDU workers celebrate_1&n
 JD(U) workers celebrate after NDA victory in Bihar Assembly
elections in Patna on Wednesday. (ANI)
 
PATNA :
 
Nitish to be Bihar CM for 4th successive time
 
RJD single largest party n Owaisi’s AIMIM wins 5 seats
 
 
A STELLAR performance by the BJP enabled the ruling NDA to attain a simple majority in the Bihar Assembly notwithstanding a sharp fall in the tally of the JD(U) headed by Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, according to final results announced early Wednesday. The ruling coalition won 125 seats in the 243-member State Assembly against 110 clinched by the Opposition Grand Alliance to pave the way for a fourth successive term for Kumar in office but with diminished clout following a debilitating slide in the number of JD(U) lawmakers that came down to 43 from 71 in 2015.
 
Kumar was then a partner in the Grand Alliance which included Lalu Prasad’s RJD and the Congress. Its defeat notwithstanding, the RJD, whose campaign Tejashwi Yadav, the younger son and heir to party supremo Lalu Prasad helmed, emerged as the single largest party with 75 seats. The BJP, which led the table for several hours during the counting that dragged on for over 16 hours, finished second with a tally of 74 seats. Despite the slump in numbers, Kumar, who was declared the NDA’s chief ministerial candidate by the BJP brass, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi and party chief J P Nadda, is set to take over the reins of the Government.
 
Much of Kumar’s plight can be blamed on the damage Chirag Paswan’s LJP inflicted on his JD(U). Down in the dumps with just one MLA, the party spoiled the JD(U)’s chances in at least 30 seats. JD(U) spokesperson K C Tyagi told PTI in New Delhi that a “sinister” campaign was run against Nitish Kumar as part of a “conspiracy”. “Apne bhi shamil the aur begane bhi (Our own also harmed us along with the outsiders),” he said, without taking any names. He, however, expressed confidence that Kumar will become the Chief Minister again, noting that top BJP leaders including Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah have made it clear that he will head the government if the ruling NDA retains power.
 
Bihar BJP President Sanjay Jaiswal voiced similar views in Patna when he said that “the issue has been cleared by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and party chief J P Nadda much before the elections”. Apart from BJP’s 74 seats and JD(U)’s 43, the ruling alliance partners HAM and Vikassheel Insaan Party (VIP) won four seats each. The drastic fall in the number of JD(U) MLAs, however, will likely make the BJP, which hitherto played a second fiddle to Kumar, more assertive, and it may insist on a larger share in the ministerial pie and greater say in governance. Apart from Kumar’s creditable performance as an administrator, the multiple claimants to Muslim votes, including the Grand Democratic Secular Front (GDSF) comprising Asaduddin Owaisi’s AIMIM, BSP and Upendra Kushwaha’s RLSP worked in NDA’s favour and scuppered the Mahagathbandhan’s chances.
 
Muslim and Yadav voters have for long formed the bedrock of the RJD’s support base. Owaisi’s AIMIM emerged as a surprise package of the election, winning five seats. The party had gained a foothold winning a seat in a by-election in Bihar earlier, but made significant inroads into the Seemanchanchal region which has a large presence of Muslim voters. Its ally BSP also clinched one seat. Kumar, who has a clean image and is considered incorruptible, has been credited with ridding the State of the “jungle raj”, as the Lalu-Rabri Government of 15 years preceding 2005 is often described by its critics.
 
The JD(U) leader also earned praise for his impetus on infrastructure development and improving health care system and education. Besides, Modi’s enduring charisma not only powered the alliance’s victory but also helped the BJP to pre-eminent position in the NDA in Bihar for the first time and cut his former bete noire Nitish Kumar, once considered a secular alternative to him, to size. The election also saw the coming of age of Tejashwi Yadav, who came across as an indefatigable leader after RJD’s unprecedented drubbing in the Lok Sabha polls last year when it failed to open its account. HAM President Jitan Ram Manjhi defeated former State Assembly Speaker Uday Narayan Chaudhary in Imamganj of Gaya district.