Patna: The ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA) led by Chief Minister Nitish Kumar scored a sweeping victory in the Bihar Assembly elections, returning to power with a decisive three-fourth majority. The alliance secured 202 of the 243 Assembly seats, leaving the opposition Mahagathbandhan (Grand Alliance) with just 35.
According to the Election Commission’s final data, the NDA’s vote share stood at 46.7%, compared to 37.5% for the INDIA bloc. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) emerged as the single-largest party with 89 seats, while Nitish Kumar’s Janata Dal (United) followed closely with 85. The Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) led by Chirag Paswan won 19 seats, Hindustani Awam Morcha (Secular) secured 5, and Rashtriya Lok Morcha bagged 4.
The opposition suffered one of its worst electoral defeats in recent years — the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) won 25 seats, Congress won just 6, and the Left parties 3. Asaduddin Owaisi’s AIMIM won 5, while Prashant Kishor’s Jan Suraaj failed to make any impact in its debut.
Rahul Gandhi, reacting to the results, called them “truly surprising” and claimed that the elections were “not fair from the very beginning.” He met Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge to discuss the party’s poor performance — its second-worst in the state since 2010. CPI(M) leaders blamed the Congress for failing to build a strong coalition against the NDA.
Union Minister Chirag Paswan described the results as a validation of his efforts to “revive the LJP (RV)” after its 2020 setback. He confirmed that his party had discussed government formation with Nitish Kumar.
Meanwhile, NCP (Sharad Pawar) chief Sharad Pawar questioned how the Election Commission permitted the distribution of funds under the Mukhyamantri Mahila Rojgar Yojana during the poll process. The women’s entrepreneurship scheme, under which ₹10,000 was transferred to women’s bank accounts, is widely credited with boosting NDA’s popularity among women voters.
The BJP celebrated the outcome as a reaffirmation of voter faith in “double-engine governance,” while opposition parties, including the Shiv Sena (UBT), alleged “vote theft” and accused the Election Commission of bias. Protests were also held by the Youth Congress in Bengaluru demanding a probe into alleged irregularities.
The election’s result is being seen as a major political revival for Nitish Kumar, who has now cemented his position as one of India’s longest-serving Chief Ministers. Political analysts believe the women-centric welfare schemes, coordinated campaigning by the NDA partners, and a divided opposition contributed to the ruling alliance’s decisive victory.
