NDA Surges Ahead in Bihar, Leads 166 Seats as INDIA Bloc Trails in Early Count

PATNA, Nov 14: The ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA) established a dominant early lead in the Bihar Assembly elections on Friday, securing 166 seats—well above the majority mark of 122—as counting progressed, according to the Election Commission.

The opposition INDIA bloc lagged far behind, leading in just 59 of the 243 seats. Officials cautioned that the numbers may shift as several rounds of counting were still underway.

Among NDA constituents, the BJP led in 72 seats, JD(U) in 71, LJP(RV) in 18, HAM (S) in four, and the RLM in one. Within the INDIA bloc, the RJD led in 43 seats, Congress in eight, CPIM(L) Liberation in six, and CPI and CPI(M) in one each.

Both the Jan Suraaj Party, led by Prashant Kishor, and Mukesh Sahani’s VIP were trailing across all contested seats.

High-profile contests also saw mixed fortunes:
– RJD’s singer-turned-politician Khesari Lal Yadav was trailing in Chhapra.
– BJP’s Maithili Thakur was leading in Alinagar.
– RJD’s Osama Shahab, son of late Mohammad Shahabuddin, led in Ragunathpur.
– JD(U) minister Leshi Singh held the lead in Dhamdaha.
– INDIA bloc’s CM face Tejashwi Yadav led in Raghopur.
– BJP Deputy CMs Samrat Choudhary (Tarapur) and Vijay Kumar Sinha (Lakhisarai) were leading.
– JJD founder Tej Pratap Yadav slipped to fourth place in Mahua, where LJP(RV)’s Sanjay Kumar Singh led. (Agencies)