JD(U) National Council meet on June 21, Nitish’s consultations with top leaders spark buzz
Ahead of the meeting, former chief minister Nitish Kumar has been holding a series of one-on-one meetings with his close associates and senior JD(U) leaders.
Amid tight security arrangements, voting for the first phase of the Bihar Assembly elections was held peacefully on Thursday with the highest-ever voter turnout of 64.66% in the history of the state.
A total of 45,341 polling booths were set up across 121 constituencies in 18 districts, for over 3.75 crore voters. The fate of 1,314 candidates, including 122 women, was sealed in the EVMs.
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Till 5 pm, the highest polling was reported from Begusarai district (67.32%), followed by Samastipur (66.65%) and Madhepura (65.74%), while the lowest turnout was recorded in Sheikhpura, where 52.36 per cent of voters exercised their franchise.
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Except for a few stray incidents reported from some areas, the polling passed off peacefully. Election boycotts were reported from Booth No. 56 in Brahmpur Assembly Constituency, Booth Nos. 165 and 166 in Fatuha, and Booth Nos. 1, 2, and 5 in Suryagarha.
Several prominent leaders, including JD(U) President and Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, BJP leader and Deputy Chief Minister Samrat Chaudhary, Union Minister of State for Home Affairs Nityanand Rai, Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) Chief Chirag Paswan, and Vikassheel Insaan Party (VIP) chief and Mahagathbandhan Deputy CM face Mukesh Sahani, cast their votes.
After voting in Patna, INDIA bloc’s chief ministerial candidate Tejashwi Yadav urged the people of Bihar to vote in large numbers. He said voters should consider their present and future while casting their votes and give priority to issues such as employment, education, and better healthcare. He claimed that the INDIA alliance’s victory was certain and that a new government would be formed after 14 November.
His brother and former minister Tej Pratap Yadav said he would support whichever government comes to power, provided it creates jobs, takes concrete steps to stop migration, and brings real change to Bihar.
After casting his vote in Khagaria, Rashtriya Lok Janshakti Party (RLJP) chief and former Union Minister Pashupati Kumar Paras said that voter turnout appeared to be low as many people were away working in other regions.
At several polling stations, voting was delayed due to technical glitches in EVM and VVPAT machines, leading to long queues and inconvenience for voters. Polling officials repaired the machines, after which polling resumed smoothly.
In Lakhisarai, the convoy of Deputy Chief Minister and BJP candidate Vijay Kumar Sinha was attacked, with stones pelted at his vehicles, causing damage. Sinha accused RJD supporters of being behind the attack.
He informed the District Magistrate and Superintendent of Police about the incident, saying, “We will not allow Jungle Raj to return to Bihar. As long as Vijay Sinha is here, Jungle Raj will not come back.”
A video showing a heated argument between Vijay Sinha and RJD MLC Ajay Kumar Singh in Lakhisarai went viral on social media. In the video, both leaders were seen accusing each other. Sinha alleged that the RJD MLC was drunk, while MLC Ajay Kumar Singh claimed that Sinha was angry because he had been stopped from distributing money the previous night.
In the Mokama constituency, RJD candidate Veena Devi’s husband and strongman Surajbhan Singh faced protests when he visited to appeal for votes. Despite his attempts to persuade the voters, they refused to listen, forcing him to leave the area.
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