International Desk
Following a decisive defeat in Bihar’s state assembly elections, former Congress President and India’s main opposition leader, Rahul Gandhi, has expressed surprise at the outcome, while raising concerns over the conduct of the polls.
Although he did not directly allege vote manipulation, Gandhi questioned the fairness of the election process and expressed gratitude to voters who supported candidates from the Congress-RJD alliance, known as the Mahagathbandhan.
In a social media post on X on Friday night, immediately after the results were declared, he wrote: “I extend my heartfelt gratitude to the millions of voters in Bihar who voted for the Mahagathbandhan candidates. The result in Bihar is truly astonishing. We could not secure a victory in an election that was not entirely fair from the start.”
Bihar, a neighboring state of West Bengal, has a total of 243 assembly seats. Voting was conducted in two phases. On 6 November, the first phase covered 121 constituencies, with voter turnout exceeding 65 percent. The second phase took place on 11 November across 122 constituencies, recording a turnout of more than 68 percent. Overall, nearly 67 percent of registered voters participated in the election.
The main contest was between the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), led by the BJP-Janata Dal (United) coalition, and the Mahagathbandhan, comprising Congress and the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD). According to the official results, NDA candidates won 202 out of 242 declared seats, while the Mahagathbandhan secured victories in 35 constituencies.
Within the NDA, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) emerged as the largest partner with 89 seats, followed by Nitish Kumar’s Janata Dal (United) winning 85 seats. Other coalition partners included Chirag Paswan’s Lok Janshakti Party with 19 seats and Jitan Ram Manjhi’s Hindustani Awam Morcha with 5 seats.
The Congress party’s performance was significantly weaker than in the previous 2020 Bihar assembly elections. In 2020, Congress contested 70 seats, winning 19. This year, with candidates in 61 constituencies, it managed only 6 victories. RJD’s results were also disappointing, with 25 wins out of 143 contested seats, compared to 75 wins from 144 candidates in 2020.
Rahul Gandhi emphasized the broader significance of the electoral battle, describing it as a fight to uphold the Constitution and democracy. He stated that Congress and the India alliance would carefully review the election outcome and intensify efforts to strengthen democratic processes in the country.
The Bihar election outcome represents a substantial consolidation of the NDA’s political dominance in the state, while prompting introspection among opposition parties regarding strategy, voter outreach, and alliance management ahead of future elections.