14.55 Pc Turnout Till 9 Am In Second Phase Of Bihar Polls

Patna: As voting continued at a moderate pace in 122 assembly constituencies of Bihar on Tuesday, 14.55 per cent of the 3.7 crore voters exercised their franchise till 9 am to decide the electoral fate of 1,302 candidates in the second and final phase of voting.

Although Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, a member of the state legislative council, did not contest the polls himself, the election is being seen as a genuine referendum on the JD(U) chief, who has been in power longer than his predecessors.

The second phase, with eight ministers from his cabinet in the fray, involves major risks from the ruling NDA as well as the opposition INDIA bloc, which is pinning its hopes on the incumbency factor, as well as the high concentration of Muslims in most of the poll-bound districts.

Gayaji district recorded the highest ever voting percentage at 15.97, followed by Kishanganj (15.81) and Jamui (15.77). Bhagalpur district recorded the lowest turnout at 13.43 per cent till 9 am.

In the first phase, on November 6, a “record” rate of 65.09 per cent of 3.75 crore voters in 121 constituencies voted; both rival groups claim this is to their advantage.

However, Prashant Kishor, founder of the Jan Suraaj Party, the famous ‘X factor’ in the elections, believes that the increase in vote percentage is due to the people of the state looking for an “alternative” finding an alternative in his barely year-old outfit.

He said voting for 122 constituencies in Bihar has begun in the second and final phase of the high-stakes assembly elections amid tight security arrangements. Voting starts at 07.00 in the morning and will continue until 17.00 in the evening. At this stage, the electoral fate of 1,302 candidates, including many ministers in the Nitish Kumar government, will be decided.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chief Minister Nitish Kumar urged voters to exercise their voting rights in the final phase of voting and set a new voting record.

The Prime Minister said on

Kumar said voting was “not only our right but also a responsibility.” “I appeal to voters to exercise their right to vote in the second phase of Bihar assembly elections,” he said in a social media post.

The districts where the voting took place include West and East Champaran, Sitamarhi, Madhubani, Supaul, Araria and Kishanganj, all of which share borders with Nepal.

Most of these areas are in the Muslim-majority Seemanchal region, making it a risky fight for both the INDIA bloc, which relies on support from the minority community, and the ruling NDA, which claims the opposition is protecting infiltrators.

Deputy Chief Minister Vijay Kumar Sinha said people “blessed the twin-engine government’s ‘Sabka Saath Sabka Vikas’ mantra by pressing the voting button”.