NDA Prepares for an Intense Bihar Battle

The BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) is preparing for a tough and closely contested battle in the upcoming Bihar Assembly elections, with internal assessments pointing to a highly competitive race shaped by localized anti-incumbency, lack of a pan-Bihar face, and the uncertain impact of new entrants such as Prashant Kishor.

- ABHINANDAN MISHRA

Senior BJP leaders and election functionaries acknowledge that while the party machinery is active on the ground, there is no scope for complacency as the margins are expected to be narrow.

In the 2020 Bihar Assembly elections, the NDA secured 125 seats—just above the majority mark of 122—in the 243-member House, while the Grand Alliance, led by the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), won 110 seats. The NDA polled approximately 37.3% of the votes (BJP 19.5%, JD(U) 15.4%, others 2.4%) compared to the Grand Alliance's 37.2% (RJD 23.1%, Congress 9.5%, Left parties 4.6%), making it one of the closest electoral verdicts in the state's history.

A senior BJP leader told The Sunday Guardian that "the difference between winning and losing is going to come down to extremely thin margins. We are not under any illusion that this will be an easy election. Ticket distribution will be critical, and any mistake at that stage could cost us multiple seats."

Functionaries said that one of the key challenges facing the NDA is a perceptible anti-incumbency sentiment against the Nitish Kumar-led state government, especially in rural and semi-urban pockets. "It's not limited to urban voters. In many villages, there is dissatisfaction over jobs, local infrastructure, and the perception that the government has not lived up to expectations," a BJP district-level organizer said.