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'Become like BJP': Key ally's suggestion to Congress after embarrassing loss in Bihar elections
According to EC's data at 3 pm, the Congress, which fielded candidates for 61 assembly constituencies, was ahead in only three seats.
As the Mahagathbandhan trailed behind the BJP-JDU-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) by a massive margin of seats, a leader from Uddhav Thackeray's Shiv Sena, which is also a part of the opposition INDIA bloc, suggested that the Congress should "become like the BJP and work 24x7" instead of "sitting in air-conditioned offices".
While the NDA -- comprising the Bharatiya Janata Party and Janata Dal (United) primarily -- was leading in over 200 seats, the Mahagathbandhan -- mainly including the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) and Congress -- was ahead on just around 37 seats, as per the Election Commission's data at 3:00 pm. Follow Bihar election results 2025 LIVE updates
Of this, the BJP was leading in 95 seats and the Congress, which fielded candidates for 61 assembly constituencies, was ahead in only three seats.
Sena (UBT) spokesperson Anand Dubey reacted to the election results, for which the vote-counting process was still underway, and said that if any party wants to defeat the BJP, it should become like the BJP and work around the clock, rather than sitting inside air-conditioned offices.
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He suggested that Congress needs to get down on the roads and work for the people, saying that only then will the party be able to make any difference.
“If anyone wants to defeat the BJP, they have to become like the BJP and work 24×7. The Congress will have to work in the same manner. They cannot sit in air-conditioned offices; they need to get down on the roads and work for the people. Only then will it make any difference," Dubey told news agency PTI.
Earlier in the day, before the vote-counting process began, RJD leader and Mahagathbandhan's chief ministerial candidate Tejashwi Yadav had asserted that his alliance would win the 2025 Bihar assembly polls and form the government in the state.
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A majority mark of 122 is required in the 243-member Bihar assembly to form the government, a benchmark well surpassed by the BJP-JDU-led NDA.
Bihar went to polls in two phases, on November 6 and 11. The first phase saw a voter turnout of 65.08 per cent, while the second phase had a 68.76 per cent voter turnout. According to the Election Commission of India, Bihar recorded an overall "historic" voter turnout of 66.91 per cent.
ECI began the process of counting votes at 8 am on Friday. The results of the high-stakes battle will decide whether Nitish Kumar will return to power, adding five more years to his 20-year-long legacy, or if the Mahagathbandhan makes a surprise turn of events and forms the government in Bihar.
