As counting trends get clearer in Bihar Assembly elections 2020, with leads showing the NDA ahead on 131 seats in the House of 243, the big picture emerging is that Nitish Kumar’s possible continuation as Chief Minister will be powered by it’s ally the BJP, which has graduated to being the big brother in the state.
From 53 in 2015, the saffron party is already ahead on 74 seats, zipping past the JD(U) that has fallen to 47, down 24 from 2015. Emerging as the single largest party in the state, the BJP is all set to emerge as the lead partner in the state, which means a bigger say in government-formation and other key decisions.
The Nitish Kumar-led JD(U), fighting heavy incumbency, was also battling aggressive allies in BJP and the Chirag Paswan-led LJP, who eventually walked out of the alliance on poll eve, vowing to unseat Nitish Kumar.
Initial calculations suggest that Paswan’s rebellion may have dented the JD(U) chances in several seats, dividing the Scheduled caste votes that constitute about 16% of the population. Paswan, who reportedly hoped to play the kingmaker, may not stand to gain much in terms of seats and a share of the power pie.
But, the politician who has taken the biggest hit appears to be the RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav. The huge hype around him and the huge crowds he drew at rallies has not translated into votes. The RJD, which fought its first election without Lalu Prasad Yadav, is down to 64, down 17 from 81 it bagged in 2015. Piggybacking on the RJD, the Congress is leading in 20 seats, down from its 27 in 2015. Fighting decades of decay in the state, the Congress had fielded candidates on 70 seats.
