NEW DELHI: The opposition kept up its “vote chori” chorus on Friday as chief minister Nitish Kumar’s NDA appeared headed for a sweeping return to power with a commanding mandate.Early trends, after several rounds of counting, showed the NDA leading in 200 seats. With 122 needed for a simple majority, touching the 200 mark would mark a historic shift in Bihar’s political landscape if the numbers hold.For the Mahagathbandhan, the trends spelled trouble. The alliance was ahead in only 36 seats, prompting the INDIA bloc to revive its allegations of “vote chori” and raise the SIR pitch, even though the mandate on the ground suggested these claims had little resonance with voters.
Congress calls mandate ‘vote chori’
Congress’s Bihar observer Ashok Gehlot, who is also Rajasthan’s ex-chief minister, said the mandate was “vote chori” that Rahul Gandhi meant. Gehlot alleged that the Election Commission was “colluding with the ruling party”. “Bihar results are disappointing, there is no doubt about it. The kind of atmosphere I saw there – women were given Rs 10,000 each; it was being given even when the Election Campaign was ongoing…EC remained a mute spectator. Why did it not stop this? It should have, but it didn’t…This means that what Rahul Gandhi said for Vote Chori, this is what Vote Chori is. If fair elections are not held, if rigging takes place, if bopoth capturing takes place or there is cheating and money is being distributed – EC didn’t take any action, they were colluding with the ruling party. Money is being misused these days,” Ashok Gehlot said.Congress spokesperson Pawan said that the poll was a “direct contest between the the Election Commission of India and the people of Bihar”.“The contest is directly between the Election Commission of India and the people of Bihar, and let’s see who wins. I’m not even talking about parties. I’m talking about a direct, straight contest between CEC Gyanesh Kumar and the people of Bihar,” Khera was quoted as saying by news agency PTI.Targeting the ECI chief Gyanesh Kumar, Khera said Kumar is “gaining an upper hand over the people of Bihar… I can’t underestimate the people of Bihar”. “These are just early trends, we’re waiting a bit. The initial trends certainly suggest that Gyanesh Kumar is gaining an upper hand over the people of Bihar… I can’t underestimate the people of Bihar. They have shown courage. They showed it despite the SIR. Now, let’s see in the coming hours how effective Gyanesh Kumar will be,” Khera said.
Akhilesh cries electoral conspiracy
Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav on Friday launched a scathing attack on the Bharatiya Janata Party, terming the party as a “deceit” and blaming the Special Intensive Revision for trends predicting Mahagathbandhan’s dismal loss in Bihar elections.He termed the SIR as an “electoral conspiracy”, asserting that after Bihar, it won’t be possible in other states, including West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh or any other state.“The game that the Sir played in Bihar will no longer be possible in West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh or anywhere else, because this electoral conspiracy has now been exposed. From now on, we will not let them play this game. Just like CCTV, our ‘PPTV’ — meaning ‘PDA Prahari’ — will stay alert and foil the BJP’s intentions. The BJP is not a party, it is a deceit (BJP dal nahi chhal hai),” Yadav wrote on ‘X’.
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