Patna: Bihar Congress chief Rajesh Ram on Friday raised doubts over the “integrity” of the counting process even as Election Commission trends placed the NDA comfortably ahead of the Mahagathbandhan.
The Election Commission’s numbers delivered a sweeping early advantage to the ruling alliance. By late morning, the NDA had crossed the 166-seat mark, while the Mahagathbandhan lagged at 56, signalling a sharp tilt in favour of the BJP-led coalition.
Within the NDA, the JD(U) led in 75 seats, the BJP in 72, with allies LJP (RV) (18) and HAMS (5) adding heft to the front.
The Mahagathbandhan’s early tally rested largely on the RJD’s leads in 41 seats, followed by Congress at seven, Left partners CPI(ML)-Liberation (5) and CPI(M), and CPI in one each
The tally is likely to change with several rounds of counting left.
Amid this shifting electoral map, Ram alleged “serious anomalies” in the counting process, claiming that the procedure had slowed abruptly in several centres after the initial rounds.
Accusing the administration of attempting to “steal votes”, he claimed there were reports of “server vans” hovering around counting centres and “irregularities at booths.” “When vote theft happens in Maharashtra and Haryana, why will people not suspect the same here? Especially the Opposition,” he told PTI Video.
Ram argued that Bihar’s electorate was showing “visible resentment” rooted in unemployment, paper leaks, lack of healthcare, and persistent distress migration.
“Women don’t want their husbands to go outside the state to earn. Youths are frustrated. The 20-year rule backed by the BJP has failed them,” he added.
The Congress leader also echoed the RJD’s warnings that any perceived wrongdoing could trigger unrest.
“Voters know whom they pressed the button for. If the outcome doesn’t match their expectation, anger is natural,” he said.
Attacking Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, Ram alleged that the BJP had “completely captured” him.
“JD(U) leaders and workers are themselves unhappy. Even they know this government is on its way out. The public wants a government that delivers jobs, medicines, and dignity,” he said.
Bihar Congress in-charge Krishna Allavaru, speaking to PTI Video, said the party would wait until the end of the day before commenting on the numbers.
“These are only early trends. At the end of the day, the final numbers will speak,” he said.
Asked about allegations of irregularities in the counting process, he said, “The Election Commission, the Prime Minister, and the Home Minister must assure the people that the process has been neutral and transparent. There are many questions, many pieces of evidence. They must clarify.”
Congress MP Manoj Kumar, speaking to PTI Video, said people in the state were looking for political change.
“People will surely bring change in Bihar,” he said, adding that early trends were not an accurate reflection of the final outcome.
“The sentiment for change that we saw across the state is strong. Early trends never reveal the whole picture,” he said.
Responding to RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav’s assertion that “change is certain”, JDU leader Neeraj Kumar said the opposition had repeatedly made similar claims in recent elections.
“His father has been claiming that they are coming to power since 2005. What happened? In 2019, they conceded a defeat. In 2020, a grim defeat. In 2024, a decisive defeat. Defeat after defeat. Which leader will accept a wrestler who gets pinned to the mat every time?”, the JDU leader said.
On Tejashwi’s late-night message warning officials against alleged irregularities, the JDU leader dismissed the remarks.
“If there is any complaint, go to the Election Commission. It is a constitutional institution. Politics is not done through Twitter or Facebook. Comfortable, air-conditioned politics does not build opposition movements,” he said.
In the 2020 Bihar polls, the RJD finished as the single-largest party, but the Congress performed poorly and the NDA formed the government. While the RJD won 75 out of the 144 seats it contested, the Congress managed just 19 of the 70 seats it fought on. The upcoming rounds will reveal if this year will be a repeat of 2020.
The Bihar Assembly Election 2025 was held in two phases. The first phase, held on November 6, recorded a voter turnout of 65.08 per cent, while the second phase recorded 67.14 per cent.
