The ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA) stormed back to power in Bihar on Friday with a sweeping mandate, crushing the Mahagathbandhan and reaffirming both Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s popularity and Chief Minister Nitish Kumar’s political resilience. The verdict dealt a severe blow to the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) and its key ally, the Congress, with their seat tally falling to the lowest in 15 years.

The magnitude of the NDA’s victory was evident as its two principal constituents, the BJP and JD(U), achieved an impressive strike rate of nearly 85 per cent in the 101 seats each contested, while the alliance secured a three-fourths majority in the 243-member Assembly.

With the NDA securing a massive tally of 202 seats , the BJP emerged as the single largest party with 89 sea

See Full Page