Bihar is in the throes of yet another election, a five-year event that changes nothing on the ground but jolts it to the hilt. As Bihar heads into the first phase of polling on November 6, the stage is set for one of the most fiercely contested Assembly elections in recent times. This election is crucial as the stakes are high-not just for Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and the NDA alliance, but also for the INDIA bloc led by the RJD-Congress combine, as their strength and cohesion would be tested. In a state where political equations are based on caste calculus and shifting alliances are more of a rule than an exception, both sides are presenting sharply contrasting narratives.
The issues are not new, but promises are. Predictably, the narrative is far removed from the actual problems and solutions. The Bihar voters are being promised the moon — Sita temple to flood control to revival of cities to defence corridor — almost everything under the sun but are bereft of the immediate concerns of the man who would press the button on the EVM.
The NDA, spearheaded by the BJP, is projecting its campaign around Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s “Viksit Bihar” vision and Nitish Kumar’s governance record-however frayed it may have become. Union Home Minister Amit Shah, addressing rallies in Sheohar and Sitamarhi, unveiled an ambitious roadmap: a defence corridor to generate industrial employment, revival of closed sugar mills, factories in every district, and the transformation of airports to global standards. When and how that happens is another matter altogether.
Perhaps the most emotive promise is Shah’s assurance to make Bihar “flood-free”, a recurring tragedy that has crippled the state’s economy for decades. The NDA vows to harness the Koshi River to irrigate 50,000 hectares in Mithilanchal and create a commission for flood control.
The plan to launch a Vande Bharat Express from Sitamarhi to Ayodhya, alongside INR 850-crore Sita temple at Punaura Dham, blends development with cultural symbolism — a familiar BJP strategy to fuse infrastructure with identity politics. On the other side, the INDIA bloc is fighting a battle framed around unemployment, price rise, and the erosion of social justice, which is as utopian as the NDA’s pitch for big-ticket developments. Tejashwi Yadav continues to position himself as the voice of Bihar’s youth, repeatedly invoking the twin crises of migration and joblessness but does not tell how it would it would be overcome.
The Congress, though playing a secondary role but energised with Rahul Gandhi Bullet rallies, seeks to reassert its electoral relevance through a welfare-centric plank that includes farmer support and women’s empowerment. But it is never a straight fight in Bihar; the growing presence of smaller, regional, and fringe players — like Pappu Yadav’s Jan Adhikar Party, the AIMIM, and several caste-based outfits complicates the scenario and confuses the voters. While they may not win many seats, their role as vote-splitters could decisively alter outcomes in closely contested constituencies and swing margins and influence coalition arithmetic. The outcome of the course would be available when EVMs are counted on November 14.
