Patna: In its first reaction to the electoral debacle in Bihar, the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) has adopted a matured, nuanced approach, rather than making allegations of “Vote Chori” or blaming the Election Commission, as the Congress has done.
The party, which managed to win just 25 seats in the Bihar Assembly this time, as compared to 75 in 2020, posted a restrained message on X that framed the loss as part of a longer political grind.
“Public service is an unceasing process, an endless journey. Ups and downs are inevitable in it. No sorrow in defeat, no arrogance in victory. The Rashtriya Janata Dal is the party of the poor. It will continue to raise their voice among the poor,” the RJD posted.
The party seems to have realised that blaming its loss on things such as electoral malpractices or the Special Intensive Review (SIR) would be akin to disrespecting the sentiments of the common voter. After all, the RJD knows that its existence is in Bihar alone and infuriating the public would not serve any purpose.
The Congress, however, wants to use the Bihar election results to highlight its claims of electoral malpractices across the country. Hence, MP and Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi has claimed that things were “wrong” from the start. He hopes to use this loss to buttress his claims of “Vote Chori” by the BJP and malpractices by Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.
The Congress managed to win only six of the 61 seats it contested in Bihar at a strike rate of less than 10%. In 2020, the party has won 19 seats.
In comparison, the BJP captured 89 seats, improving its 2020 tally of 74, while Nitish Kumar’s JD(U) climbed to 85 from 43. Together, the two main alliance partners delivered an almost 85 per cent strike rate across the 101 seats each contested, securing a decisive majority in the 243-member Assembly.
Some also believe that this reaction by the RJD reveals that it is trying to analyse whether it was a mistake to take the Congress along. There will certainly be questions on whether the party could have done better had it gone alone.
On Friday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had predicted a fallout between the Congress and the RJD. He had called the Congress a “migratory” and “parasitic” party that preys upon its hosts.
Meanwhile, there is speculation on where Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi were when the Bihar election results were being announced. Some say that while Rahul was in Europe, Priyanka was in the US.
