Campaign ends for high-stakes Bihar polls, drawing curtains on battle of words and nerves

Patna | Campaign ended on Sunday evening for the second and final phase of the high-stakes assembly elections in Bihar, bringing to a close a nearly month-long fierce battle of words and nerves among rivals vying for power in the state.

While the first phase of polls, which registered a record 65 per cent turnout, was held on November 6, voting for the second phase will be held on November 11, followed by the counting of votes on November 14.

Elections will be held in 122 seats in the second phase, while polling happened in 121 assembly segments in the first round.

Among the significant seats going to the polls in this phase are Chakai, from where JD(U) minister Sumit Kumar Singh is seeking a re-election, BJP MLA Shreyasi Singh's Jamui, JD(U) minister Leshi Singh's Dhamdaha, and BJP minister Neeraj Kumar Singh's Chhatapur.

Finishing touches were given to the blitzkrieg on the closing day by Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi.

The former Congress president addressed rallies in Kishanganj and Purnea districts in the Seemanchal region, which has a sizeable population of Muslims, whose support is vital for the opposition INDIA bloc.

It was an energetic campaign by Gandhi, who addressed 15 election meetings altogether. He led a fortnight-long Voter Adhikar Yatra a couple of months ago, during which he received a good response, even though his 'vote chori' allegations did not seem to catch enough public imagination to become a poll plank.

Shah, who has been staying in the poll-bound state for days on end, running, by far, the most intensive campaign by any national leader, addressed rallies in Sasaram and Arwal, places where the BJP is relatively weak and which are, therefore, on the radar of the party's veritable principal strategist.

Singh, a former BJP president himself, addressed rallies in Aurangabad and Kaimur districts, both bordering his home state of Uttar Pradesh.

The poll campaign would be remembered for the intensive canvassing by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who took time off for 14 rallies, besides a roadshow.

This election also saw Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra campaigning in Bihar for the first time. She led a fairly vigorous campaign, with 10 rallies and a roadshow, though one of her election meetings had to be cancelled as bad weather prevented her from taking a helicopter to reach the venue.

The BJP's star-studded campaign also featured its president JP Nadda, Union Ministers Nitin Gadkari and Shivraj Singh Chouhan, regional satraps like Yogi Adityanath, Himanta Biswa Sarma and Mohan Yadav -- the CMs of UP, Assam and MP, respectively, besides actor-turned-politicians Ravi Kishan and Manoj Tiwari.

NDA leaders from other states, like Maharashtra Deputy CM Eknath Shinde of the Shiv Sena and Andhra Pradesh minister Nara Lokesh of the TDP, also campaigned for the elections here.

Away from much spotlight was the silent but determined campaign by CM Nitish Kumar, the JD(U) supremo, who is aiming for a fifth consecutive term in office.

After sharing the stage with Modi at his inaugural rally in Samastipur a fortnight ago, Kumar was not seen at any of the PM's public meetings or the roadshow in Patna, leading the opposition to allege that all was not well between the allies.

However, Kumar, whose health has been a matter of much speculation, remained unperturbed and went on with his rallies and impromptu roadshows when the weather played spoilsport.

A spirited campaign was also led by his former deputy and present rival, Tejashwi Yadav, who fired on all cylinders, buoyed by the confidence shown in him by the INDIA bloc, which has declared him as its CM candidate.

The campaign of the Jan Suraaj Party, considered to be the 'X factor' of this election, was all about its founder, Prashant Kishor, who has been credited with managing many glitzy campaigns of political bigwigs across the country, but chose to sweat it out in his home state with a conventional door-to-door style of outreach.