NDA’s Welfare Agenda Strikes Chord With Bihar Voters
A mix of State and Central welfare schemes, including the formation of a Youth Commission and the setting up of a Makhana Board, helped the NDA overcome anti-incumbency and secure a historic landslide victory: Reports
NEW DELHI: A bevy of welfare-oriented policy schemes targeting the youth, topped by a ₹10,000 dole for women, combined with an aggressive development pitch and warnings of a return to “jungle raj” under the RJD-led Opposition helped the NDA maintain its winning streak in the Bihar Assembly elections.
The NDA’s Sankalp Patra, which promised the creation of one crore jobs, 50,000 cottage industries, 100 MSME parks, semiconductor manufacturing parks, new medical colleges in every district, 50 lakh new homes, and 125 units of free electricity, appeared to have shaped a favourable narrative.
A mix of State and Central welfare schemes, including the formation of a Youth Commission and the setting up of a Makhana Board, helped the NDA overcome anti-incumbency and secure a historic landslide victory. Just before the poll schedule was announced, the Centre inaugurated the Purnea airport, flagged off a Vande Bharat train connecting Patna to Delhi, and unveiled several railway and highway projects worth thousands of crores.
The NDA government at the Centre also launched Patna’s metro train service and announced 10 new industrial parks aimed at boosting job creation.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Friday described the overwhelming mandate for the NDA as the people’s endorsement of its work in development, women’s safety, good governance, and welfare of the poor. In a series of posts on X, he said that over the last 11 years, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had worked wholeheartedly for Bihar, while Chief Minister Nitish Kumar had pulled the state out of the “darkness of jungle raj.”
The NDA was poised to sweep the Bihar Assembly polls, leading in nearly 200 of the 243 seats, with the BJP emerging as the single largest party with an almost 95 per cent strike rate.
Echoing similar sentiments, Union minister and BJP president J.P. Nadda said on X that the “resounding majority” demonstrated that the people of Bihar had rejected the Mahagathbandhan’s “jungle raj” and corruption, and embraced the coalition’s promise of good governance, stability, and development. The unprecedented mandate, he said, strengthens the NDA’s resolve to transform Bihar into a developed state and contribute to making India a developed nation.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the NDA’s star campaigner, addressed 13 rallies across the State, invoking Bihari pride, celebrating traditions such as Chhath Puja, and criticising the RJD-Congress alliance for allegedly favouring infiltrators and profiting from public funds at the expense of welfare. His repeated emphasis on the “jungle raj” during the Lalu Prasad–Rabri Devi era and warnings to youth against being swayed by RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav’s promises appeared to have resonated strongly.
At a rally in Araria, Modi said, “The naamdaar of the Congress called devotion to Chhathi Maiya a ‘drama’. They never visit Ayodhya to have the darshan of Lord Shri Ram. They dislike Lord Ram, but they can at least pay respects at shrines dedicated to Nishad Raj, Shabri Mata, and Maharshi Valmiki. Their reluctance shows their disdain for Dalits and backward classes.”
Modi launched the NDA’s campaign on October 24 at Samastipur, the birthplace of socialist leader Karpoori Thakur, recently awarded the Bharat Ratna, striking what appeared to be the perfect chord with voters.