New Delhi: As vote counting got underway in Bihar on Thursday morning, the Bharatiya Janata Party’s Delhi headquarters appeared ready for celebrations, with preparations featuring an array of traditional Bihari dishes. Staff at the party office confirmed that jalebi would be served for dessert, while sattu paratha and baingan chokha would form part of the main meal. Litti chokha was also being readied, in what appeared to be a sign of the party’s confidence in a strong performance by the National Democratic Alliance (NDA).
Nitin Nabin, a BJP candidate and Bihar minister, said he was certain the NDA would return to power with a result reminiscent of 2010. “We are all confident that the NDA will perform like it did in 2010. We will form the government and win more than 200 seats,” he spoke to media.
He criticised the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), saying the party had failed to move beyond what he described as a “jungle raj” mindset.
Nabin is seeking a fourth term from the Bankipur assembly seat in Patna district, where he faces Rekha Kumar of the RJD and Vandana Kumari of Jan Suraaj — a party contesting its first election. Counting is underway across all 243 constituencies, with security tightened at centres in Patna, Gaya and other districts.
This year’s election has already set turnout records. The second phase recorded 69.20% polling — the highest in Bihar’s electoral history. The overall turnout across both phases stood at 67.13%, the highest since 1951, with the first phase registering 65.06%, according to the Election Commission.
