Bihar’s Verdict

The fallout of the election results from Bihar has effectively put the BJP-led NDA back in the driver’s seat in India’s politics. The NDA didn’t just win, it swept the state, expanding its tally by nearly 80 seats and tightening its grip on one of India’s most politically decisive regions. This, despite months of controversy over the chaotic overhaul of voter rolls that saw more than four million names deleted.

If the opposition was hoping that public anger over these deletions would translate into votes, the Bihar verdict has delivered a sobering reality check. The message from the electorate is unmistakable: whatever the complaints, whatever the confusion, the PM Modi’s popularity remains unmatched. So does that of JDU’s Nitish Kumar who has now been elected Bihar’s CM for a record tenth time.

Bihar is not just another state. With a population larger than most countries, its politics can be a bellwether for the mood across the other regions in the country, if not all. True, there were other factors too.  The BJP-JDU alliance has tapped into voter groups—especially women—with a precision the opposition simply hasn’t managed.

The female turnout in this election crossed 71 percent, nearly ten percentage points higher than men. That is not an accident. Nitish Kumar’s long-standing focus on women—from scholarships to small-business support—and his alcohol ban, controversial though it was, forged a deep emotional connection in households tired of domestic violence and addiction. The BJP, too, has been steadily building its messaging around women’s welfare, safety, and dignity.

The opposition, on the other hand, didn’t do much complaining. The truth is harsher: elections are not won by grievance alone. They’re won by organisation, message discipline, and the ability to read social changes as they happen, not years after. Modi’s coalition has mastered this. The opposition has not.

Today’s Bihar verdict should be seen for what it is—a warning flare. Not because the BJP is unbeatable, but because the opposition remains unprepared, internally divided, and detached from voter aspirations. India’s democracy needs a credible challenger, not for the sake of electoral arithmetic, but for the health of its public debate.