Gloomy 'Children's Day' for Lalu as sons struggle; big challenges loom for victorious Nitish

Friday, November 14, Children's Day, was a day to forget for the Rashtriya Janata Dal and its founder Lalu Prasad Yadav. His older son, the mercurial Tej Pratap Yadav, expectedly had a forgettable day at the hustings. But the hurt that the electorate went on to inflict on younger son Tejashwi Yadav and the RJD would have been more keenly felt by Lalu. Many observers, in fact, blamed Lalu and his jungle raj during the 15 years RJD spent in power as having played a huge role in ensuring the defeat of Tejashwi, who was vying to be the youngest CM in Bihar. These experts felt that Nitish's rule, which followed, was rewarded for the benefits it brought in comparison. Such was the mauling that the RJD suffered on the day that Tejashwi trailed from the party bastion of Raghopur at one point. The constituency had been represented both by Lalu and Tejashwi's mother former Chief Minister Rabri Devi earlier. Tejashwi, who had been holding the seat since 2015, had been expected to romp home to an easy win. He did win by a margin of over 10000 votes in the end but not before enduring nail-biting moments while trailing by around 5000 votes during counting. Bihar poll results show nothing 'grand' about Grand Alliance; Opposition needs to reinvent itself What won the day Tejashwi's win from the constituency was among the few silver linings on a day when the RJD was reduced to 25 seats despite polling the largest percentage of votes in the state. Only the 22 seats that the RJD won in 2010 ranked below this drubbing. Prominent factors that seem to have played a part in the result, according to experts, include the Rs 10000 direct benefit transfer made to 25 lakh women voters ahead of elections. The women, a loyal base for Nitish, went on to cast their ballots in record numbers with 2.52 lakh of them turning up in contrast to just 2.47 lakh men voters. There was also the promise to make one crore 'lakhpati didis', generation of one crore jobs and many more such promises from Nitish that were seen as having played a part. FInally, there was the fondness for Bihar's very own ' Sushasan Babu '. Most voters seem to have seen this as the last time Nitish Kumar was vying for the Chief Ministership and seemed to have done their best to ensure that the 74-year-old received a proper farewell gift from them. It also helped that the NDA got their poll arithmetic right. One of India's foremost poll experts Yogendra Yadav while highlighting this spoke of how the NDA had a bigger pool of voters to draw from than the Mahagathbandhan who only managed to reach out to 40% of the voters. All of these factors meant that despite Bihar remaining the poorest state in India, a pro-incumbency wave was unleashed in an election that saw a 71.6% turnoutthe highest in 15 years. Tharoor says neither Congress nor Lalu reached out during Bihar campaign, calls for review of defeat Big challenges ahead What remains to be seen now is how Nitish will use the mandate to shape the destiny of his state in the coming days. Many challenges remain in a state where the poor are said to be saddled with having to repay over Rs 57000 crore in microfinance loans. Then there is the problem of jobs that has forced many Biharis to migrate elsewhere. Prohibition itself has unleashed bootlegging and that remains a challenge to be addressed. And finally there is the monthly per capita income which at Rs 5700 remains the lowest in India. How Bihar's takeoff will be charted by Nitish in the circumstances is what everyone wants to see once the celebrations subside. In this lies the chance for the longest-serving Bihar to craft a more enduring legacy and be remembered as the greatest 'Sushasan Babu' the state has seen. HIGHLIGHTS | Bihar Election Results 2025: Riding on JD(U) surge, NDA takes Bihar with ease; Mahagathbandhan bites the dust