Voting is currently underway for five Rajya Sabha seats in Bihar, with both the ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA) and the Mahagathbandhan opposition projecting total confidence in a clean sweep. While 26 candidates across the country have already been elected unopposed, the contest in Bihar has turned into a high-stakes numbers game, with the counting of votes set to begin at 5:00 pm today.
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Leading the NDAโs charge, Bihar BJP president Sanjay Saraogi dismissed any possibility of an upset, stating that all five of their candidates would leave the assembly as members of the Upper House. Saraogi also took a jab at the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) for “locking up” their MLAs in hotels. This observation by Saraogi indicates a considerable degree of nervousness regarding the possibility of MLA defections in the opposition party. Deepak Prakash, a minister in the Bihar government, also shared similar sentiments when he said that the Opposition is divided, and a considerable number of MLAs from outside the NDA are likely to vote in favor of the ruling alliance.
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The NDA’s slate of candidates is particularly notable this year, featuring Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, who filed his nomination earlier this month, alongside BJP state president Nitin Nabin and JD(U)โs Ram Nath Thakur. On the other side, the RJD has fielded Amarendra Dhari Singh, banking on the combined strength of the Left parties and the Congress. The math, however, is tight: with 41 votes required per seat, the NDAโs 202-strong assembly presence comfortably secures four seats but leaves them three votes short for a fifth.
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Tejashwi Yadav has remained defiant, recently gaining a boost after the AIMIM and the lone BSP MLA pledged their support to the RJD candidate, theoretically bringing their tally to the magic number of 41. However, NDA party leaders such as Upendra Kushwaha have been quick to dismiss this move by their opponents as their last ditch effort to hold on to their existence as a “disappearing” party. With the final ballot being cast by 4:00 pm, the results will show if NDA has been able to achieve their ambitious five-seat target through cross-voting.
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