Samrat’s lead grows, Sinha makes a striking comeback: Deputy CMs steal the spotlight in Bihar elections

The National Democratic Alliance (NDA) delivered a decisive mandate in the Bihar Assembly elections on Friday, defying every exit-poll forecast. The alliance crossed the 200-seat mark, powered by commanding wins by both Deputy Chief Ministers, who set the tone for the sweep.

Deputy CMs post big wins, reinforcing NDA's dominance

Deputy Chief Minister and Agriculture Minister Vijay Kumar Sinha secured a clear win in Lakhisarai, defeating Congress’s Amaresh Kumar by nearly 25,000 votes. His counterpart, Deputy CM and Finance Minister Samrat Choudhary, recorded an even stronger performance in Tarapur, defeating RJD’s Arun Kumar by over 45,000 votes.

Their victories anchored the NDA’s momentum as results confirmed that 28 sitting ministers retained their seats, with only one suffering defeat.

NDA crosses 202 seats; Opposition struggles to make ground

According to the Election Commission, the NDA ended with 202 seats, well above the 122-seat majority mark. The BJP won 89, JD(U) 85, Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) 19, Hindustan Awam Morcha 5 and the Rashtriya Lok Morcha 4.

The Mahagathbandhan secured only 34 seats. The RJD won 25, Congress six, CPI(ML) (Liberation) two and CPI(M) one.

Asaduddin Owaisi’s AIMIM made notable gains with five seats, while the Bahujan Samaj Party and the Indian Inclusive Party won one seat each.

Only one minister loses as others post comfortable margins

Sumit Kumar Singh, Minister for Science, Technology and Technical Education, was the lone ministerial casualty, losing Chakai to RJD’s Savitri Devi by 12,972 votes.

Moti Lal Prasad, Minister of Art, Culture & Youth, was not fielded this time. The BJP’s Baidyanath Prasad replaced him in Riga and won by over 33,000 votes.

Strong wins across key ministries

Water Resources Minister Vijay Kumar Choudhary retained Sarairanjan with a margin exceeding 20,000 votes against RJD’s Arbind Kumar Sahani.

Energy Minister Bijendra Prasad Yadav won Supaul by more than 30,000 votes over Congress’s Minnatullah Rahmani.

Co-operative Department Minister Prem Kumar secured Gaya Town by 26,423 votes, defeating Congress’s Akhaury Onkar Nath.

Rural Development Minister Shravan Kumar clinched Nalanda with a margin of over 33,000 votes against Congress’s Kaushalendra Kumar.

Renu Devi, Minister of Animal and Fisheries Resources, retained Bettiah with more than 22,000 votes over Congress’s Washi Ahmad.

Health Minister Mangal Pandey won Siwan by over 9,000 votes, defeating RJD’s Awadh Bihari Choudhary.

Other ministers who secured victories included Neeraj Kumar Singh (Public Health Engineering) in Chhatapur, Leshi Singh (Food and Consumer Protection) in Dhamdaha and Madan Sahni (Social Welfare) in Bahadurpur.

High-margin victories for Industries and Road Construction Ministers

Industries Minister Nitish Mishra delivered one of the biggest victories of the election, winning Jhanjharpur by over 50,000 votes against CPI’s Ram Narayan Yadav.

Road Construction Minister Nitin Nabin posted an even higher margin, winning Bankipur by more than 51,000 votes over RJD’s Rekha Kumari.

Cabinet ministers consolidate positions across constituencies

Information and Public Relations Minister Maheshwar Hazari, Transport Minister Sheela Kumari, Education Minister Sunil Kumar and Sugarcane Industries Minister Krishnanandan Paswan won Kalyanpur, Phulparas, Bhorey and Harsidhi respectively.

Building Construction Minister Jayant Raj, Minority Welfare Minister Mohd Zama Khan, Prohibition and Excise Minister Ratnesh Sada, Panchayati Raj Minister Kedar Prasad Gupta and Sports Minister Surendra Mehata emerged victorious in Amarpur, Chainpur, Sonbarsha, Kurhani and Bachhwara.

Revenue and Land Reforms Minister Sanjay Saraogi, Environment and Climate Change Minister Sunil Kumar, Tourism Minister Raju Kumar Singh, Urban Development and Housing Minister Jibesh Kumar, Disaster Management Minister Vijay Kumar Mandal and IT Minister Krishna Kumar Mantoo won Darbhanga, Biharsharif, Sahebganj, Jale, Sikti and Amnour respectively.