Bihar Election 2025: The first phase of the Bihar Assembly election, scheduled for November 6, will test both tradition and change. Political parties have spent weeks working out caste equations and announcing welfare promises. So, what will matter more to voters this time: caste or campaign pledges?

Caste has been the immovable pillar of Bihar’s politics for decades. Every political party plans its candidates and messaging around it. But this election feels slightly different. Both the ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA) and the opposition Mahagathbandhan have made their manifestos not only on identity, but also on aspiration of young voters seeking jobs and women wanting empowerment. Youth and women make up the two largest groups in the state’s 7.45 crore electorate.

The NDA’s “

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