2 decades on, Nitish remains indispensable in state politics

It’s still all about Nitish Kumar, the chief minister of Bihar and supremo of the Janata Dal (United) in next month's assembly election.

- Arun Kumar

The JD(U) is hoping that with the NDA truly united — unlike in 2020, when the Lok Janshakti Party sabotaged its chances — Kumar can get the party to repeat its performance in the Lok Sabha election in terms of strike rate (75%; it won 12 of the 16 seats it contested), a huge improvement over its 37.3% strike rate in the 2020 assembly election. It is upbeat with the slogan “2025 se 2030, fir se Nitish (from 2025-2030, Nitish again)”.

The BJP, which almost became the single-largest party in the house in 2020 — on results day, it lagged the RJD by just one seat — but which has likely realised that it cannot win the state on its own (2020 pretty much established that), is hoping Kumar will propel the alliance to a win.