‘NDA will get a clear majority in Bihar elections’

ion defence minister and senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader Rajnath Singh believes that victory and defeat in the Bihar state assembly elections hinge on the image of the political leadership of competing coalitions.

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People have a choice between the clean images of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and chief minister Nitish Kumar or the ‘jungle raj’ of Lalu Prasad that still haunts their memory, he said, adding that voters will weigh the past and the present before casting their ballot. In his first interview after Operation Sindoor, Singh spoke in detail about the Bihar elections as well as matters related to the defence ministry with Hindustan Editor-in-chief Shashi Shekhar, Hindustan Times Editor-in-chief R Sukumar and Hindustan political editor Madan Jaira. Edited excerpts.

‘The National Democratic Alliance will get a clear majority. Iam not the only one, but even those experts who aren't our supporters are conceding it. Even they accept that we are winning, I, too, believe that a clear majority isa given and Iwon't rule out even a two-thirds majority.

At times, steps are taken for social empowerment. The government also initiates moves to increase the purchasing power of the masses. But, when people compare the tenures of the Nitish Kumar-led NDA government in Bihar with that of the previous government. They realise that only the NDA government is capable of good governance. People trust our government. This trust will lead to victory.

People are driven by the image of political parties. They assess the image of a coalition. The BJP-led coalition has successfully met people’s expectations. This is a big plus for us. On the other hand. people haven't forgotten the image Bihar earned during the Rashtriya Janata Dal rule, NDA, on the other hand, broke that image and led Bihar on the path of growth and development. People trust us. They believe that they need an NDA for the future too.