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Bihar elections results 2015: After registering a thumping win as reflected in the Bihar election results 2015, against the Narendra Modi-led Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief Lalu Prasad Yadav today declared Janata Dal (United) leader Nitish Kumar will continue as Bihar chief minister despite his party emerging as the table topper (Mahagatbandhan tally was 178 to BJP alliance’s 58), while he will launch a nation-wide stir against the “communal” Modi government.
Exultant after the JD(U)-RJD-Congress alliance appeared on course to a resounding victory, a jubilant Lalu Prasad Yadav claimed continuance of the Narendra Modi government will “break the nation into pieces”.
Putting up a stunning show, the JD(U)-led grand alliance won a thumping majority in the Bihar assembly after inflicting a crushing defeat on the BJP-led NDA.
Nitish Kumar thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Congress president Sonia Gandhi after they called to congratulate him on putting the JD(U)-led grand alliance on the road to victory in the assembly polls. “Just received a phone call from the Prime Minister congratulating me..@narendramodi thank you Modiji,” he said in a series of tweets.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi basking under the glow of ‘success’ at the hustings took a a dig at Narendra Modi over NDA’s setback in Bihar saying PM should “step on the accelerator or people will throw him out of the driver’s seat”. He declined to comment on whether his party would participate in the new government under Nitish Kumar. “Since Modiji has become Prime Minister, there have been only promises. Start the work. One year has passed and your car is not starting,” he added.
VOTE SHARE
The extent of the Grand Alliance victory can be gauged from the fact that it cornered the largest vote share in history of nearly 46 per cent as against NDA’s nearly 34 per cent. On single-party basis, however, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) managed a face-saver with a vote share of nearly 24.8 per cent – higher than individual shares of 18.5 per cent for the Lalu Prasad Yadav-led Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) and 16.7 per cent of the Nitish Kumar-led Janata Dal (United). The number of seats fought was also highest in case of the BJP. The Congress, which fought elections as part of the Grand Alliance, could manage a vote share of only about 6.7 per cent.
FINAL TALLY
Party Positions as per the Election Commission:
| Party | Won | Leading | Total |
| BJP | 53 | 0 | 53 |
| Congress | 27 | 0 | 27 |
| Janata Dal (U) | 71 | 0 | 71 |
| LJSP | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| RJD | 80 | 0 | 80 |
| RLSP | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| CPI (L) | 3 | 0 | 3 |
| HAM (S) | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Independent | 4 | 0 | 4 |
| Total | 243 | 0 | 243 |
NOTA (None of the Above)
There were few takers in the Bihar Assembly polls for the ‘none of the above’ option which was introduced by the Election Commission in 2013 following a Supreme Court judgement. According to figures made available by the poll body, 9,13,561 voters opted for the NOTA option in the state which has 243 assembly seats. Percentage-wise, around 2.5 per cent voters hit the NOTA button which is placed as the last option on the electronic voting machine. The figures and percentage may change till final results are out.
STRIKE RATE
When it comes to the winning strike rate, Lalu Prasad’s RJD has emerged victorious in 8 of every 10 seats it contested while only one of the every three BJP candidates managed to win. Among four major parties, the RJD and the Congress have improved their respective strike rates, while the BJP’s has fallen sharply from nearly 90 per cent to just 33 per cent. The JD-U has also seen its strike rate slip from 81 per cent to 70 per cent.
ARUN SHOURIE REACTS
Continuing his attack on the BJP leadership, Former Union Minister Arun Shourie today said Narendra Modi, Amit Shah and Arun Jaitley should be held accountable for the party’s loss in Bihar Assembly elections and predicted that the “silent non-cooperation movement” in the party against the leadership will now deepen. He said a “Modi-centric” campaign “lacked credibility” because of the unkept promises of the past and blamed BJP’s “divisive tactics” for the drubbing.
SHATRUGHAN SINHA TWEETS
As the grand alliance heads for a landslide majority in the Bihar Assembly elections, actor-politician Shatrughan Sinha on Sunday said the mandate given by the people of the state calls for serious introspection by the BJP-led NDA. “It is the victory of democracy and the people of Bihar. I salute them. Wishing great luck to our victorious friends and appealing for introspection to our people. The writing was always on the wall. The call of the day is introspection, modified and better strategy, teamwork and coordination in the future. Salute once again to Biharis,” Shatrughan Sinha tweeted. The BJP leader added that this win has once and for all settled the ‘Bihari vs Bahari’ verbal volleys.
Check out Bihar Assembly results as they played out here:
4: 19 pm: I thank people of Bihar for unequivocal and solid support to the grand alliance. We worked in unison and that ensured the victory of Mahagathbandhan. RJD, JDU and Congress will work keeping in mind the mandate given by the voters: Nitish Kumar
3:50 pm: Keeping BJP at the Centre is like breaking apart India. We accept the wishes of the rival political leaders but our fight with them for important causes will continue. Nitish Kumar will continue as Bihar Chief Minister: Lalu Prasad Yadav
2:30 pm: #BiharResults Nand Kishore Yadav of BJP still leading from Patna Sahib
1:45 pm: BJP loses, India wins, BJP loses, India is saved: Derek O Brien, TMC
12:55 pm: #BiharResults BJP’s Nand Kishore Yadav now leading by over 5000 votes from Patna Sahib constituency
12:39 pm: गरीबों, मजलूमों, उपेक्षितों और समस्त बिहारवासियों को मैं नतमस्तक होकर इस ऐतिहासिक जीत के लिए कोटि कोटि धन्यवाद देता हूँ: Lalu Prasad Yadav
11:41 am: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal congratulated Nitish Kumar and Lalu Prasad Yadav on their victory against NDA in Bihar assembly polls.
Congratulations @NitishKumar ji, Lalu ji & your full team. And all my Bihar brothers & sisters. Victory of tolerance, defeat of intolerance
— Mamata Banerjee (@MamataOfficial) November 8, 2015
इस एतिहासिक जीत के लिए बहुत बहुत बधाई हो नीतीश जी
— Arvind Kejriwal (@ArvindKejriwal) November 8, 2015
The Grand Alliance went well past the halfway mark, with the BJP led alliance placed a distant second, as counting for the votes cast in the Bihar assembly election entered the final phases on Sunday, showed trends in 231 constituencies put out by the Election Commission at 12.15 a.m.
The Election Commission of India said that the Grand Alliance was way ahead with leads in 158 constituencies, out of 243 seats in the Bihar assembly. The BJP-led alliance was leading in 63 seats.
Bihar: 0/243 Leads Won Total
BJP+ 70 3 70
JDU, RJD+ 165 11 165
Others: 8 8
11:28 am: #BiharResults | When Congress loses then its Sonia ji’s responsibility,similarly BJP must accept that #BiharResults is Modi ji’s responsibility: Sanjay Raut, Shiv Sena
11:21 am: #BiharResults | BJP’s Parliamentary Board is likely to meet tomorrow to analyse the poll results in Bihar where the JD(U)-RJD combine has outshone the party-led NDA
11:17 am: #BiharResults | We congratulate Nitish Kumar, this result will be turning point in country’s political future-Sanjay Raut, Shiv Sena
11:01 am: #BiharResults | Latest trends show BJP+ in 95, JD(U), RJD+ 136
10:45 am: #BiharResults | Celebrations breaks out at Congress Office in Delhi after trends show Mahagatbandhan leading
10:33 am: #BiharResults | All Owaisi-led AIMIM candidates are trailing, Lalu Prasad Yadav’s sons are leading in their seats
10:24 am: #BiharResults | This is nothing, we will cross 140 seats: Misa Bharti, RJD
9:34: #BiharResults | ‘Mahagathbandan’ (Grand Alliance) is leading now according to latest EC data. Mahagathbandhan is leading in 101, NDA 70, Other 10
9:17: Initial trends were postal ballots, now the gap is reducing.Wait and watch, says Prem Chand Gupta, RJD
9:10: #BiharResults : Latest EC data shows Bihar Minister Shyam Rajak leading from Phulwari Sharif, BJP’s Nand Kishore Yadav leading from Patna Sahib
9:08: #BiharResults | First round of counting in Gaya ends, Jitan Ram Manjhi leading in Imamganj by 500 votes
8:56: #BiharResults | According to Latest Election Commission data- BJP leads in 11 seats, JDU in 5, RJD in 9, HAM in 2, RLSP in 2, Congress in 1.
8:43: Wishing all of our people success as the final counting ensues and the long awaited results start to unfold. Jai Bihar, Shatrughan Sinha tweeted.
8:41 am: #BiharResults | BJP leading in 11 seats, JDU in 5 according to first figures coming in from Election Commission in Patna
8:36 am:#BiharResults | RJD Chief Lalu Yadav’s son Tejashwi Yadav leading from Raghopur seat in early trends
8:32 am: BJP takes the lead with 16, JD(U), RJD trail behind.
8:30 am: Big day, fight between two ‘D’s today- Development & second D-desperation for existence: Sambit Patra, BJP
8: 20 am: So far the leads stand as: BJP 5, JDU, RJD+ 4
8:00 am: Counting begins
(With PTI inputs)
