Is Bihar politics on the cusp of generational change? This question, which is the most important on the minds of the state’s voters, will be answered when the count begins at 8 am at 55 centers in the state and the results begin to appear on television.
If the exit polls are correct, Bihar is on the threshold of seismic change, as most pollsters predict that the Mahagathbandhan, led by RJD Tejashwi leader Prasad Yadav, will win the polls. However, if the results disprove the results of the exit poll, the people of Bihar will have placed their faith in Prime Minister Nitish Kumar’s “sushashan”.
Ashish Sinha, an undergraduate student from Biharsharif, wrote on his Facebook page on Monday: “Lalten wale kahte hain Nitish ne kya kiya? Maine kaha tum jis ghar mein jhakas bulb jala rahe ho na, ye Nitish ne hin kiya (RJD supporters ask what Nitish did? I tell them it was because of Nitish that his house is lit by electric bulbs) “.
Pat was the reply from Ashish’s friend on Katihar’s FB, Sandip Rai: “Bijli jalane se pet bharta hai to bolo. Rojgar kise diya hai bolo (Can electricity satisfy hunger? Tell me who got a job in Nitish) ”.
A JD (U) leader, who prefers anonymity, said it was the same as a young son telling his parents that they did nothing for him.
When Tejashwi turned 31 on Monday, RJD workers raised slogans at the party office: “Bihar mein raftaar hai, Tejashwi Sarkar hai, Nitishe jimeddar hai (Bihar has speed, Tejashwi must rule and Nitish is responsible for that).” Inadvertently, the last part of the catchphrase is loaded with meaning: that it was Nitish who not only revived the RJD but also launched Tejashwi into Bihar politics in a big way as his deputy by joining hands with Lalu Prasad and forming a government in 2015. .
Bihar elections 2020: full coverage
Tejashwi impressed people as an enthusiastic apprentice, active politician, and ambitious administrator as a deputy CM under Nitish before the head of JD (U) left RJD and formed the government with BJP in 2017, earning him the epithet. from ‘paltu chacha’.
But even Nitish’s critics cannot deny the change it brought about in Bihar, which had become synonymous with anarchy (raj jungle) and lacked any development worthy of the name before 2005, either during the Lalu and Rabri rule. Devi or previous governments mostly. led by Congress.
However, as exit polls show, the people of the state appear to have denied Nitish another term, as he recently hinted that this election could be his last. Or, young applicants and first-time voters, who had not seen such a situation prevail before 2005 in Bihar, found that the 15 years versus the 15 years of Lalu-Rabri and Nitish did not make sense, since so much water has fallen by the Ganges in the last 30 years. years, which is older than many of them.
Only the poll results will tell whether Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his BJP were unable to set a new agenda despite losing power in many states in the recent past, or whether JD (U) de Nitish missed writing on the wall by insisting on “jungle raj”. The people of Bihar already voted on this issue in 2005 and 2010, and it lost its meaning after Nitish and Lalu came together after their dismal performance in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections.
The results will also test whether BJP is still the game that makes the difference. Many of their staunch loyalists have criticized many NDA candidates for joining the fray as independents or staying neutral when the alliance featured someone they had fought hard against in the 2015 assembly elections and the 2019 parliamentary elections.
If Tejashwi forms a government, the biggest challenge for him will be to curb Lalu’s loyalists and staunch supporters to show that he meant it when he said at his election rallies that “sab ko sath leke chalenge” – a difficult promise in a volatile caste. been like Bihar. That Tejashwi is aware of fear was evident in his call for RJD supporters to “behave well and accept the mandate, whatever it is, with grace.”
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