Record voter turnout shows NDA wave in Bihar, says Sanjay Jha

Patna, Nov 7 (IANS) JD(U) national working president and Rajya Sabha member Sanjay Kumar Jha on Friday said the record voter turnout in Phase-1 of polling for the Bihar Assembly elections reflected clear public support for the NDA.

He said women voters had turned out in large numbers this time and described it as proof of their trust in the policies of Chief Minister Nitish Kumar.

The first phase of the Bihar Assembly saw record voter turnout of 64.66 per cent, the highest in the electoral history of the state.

"The turnout recorded on Thursday in the first phase of polling is because of a tremendous wave in favour of the NDA. Women are coming out in large numbers - this is a result of Nitish Kumar's work in governance, education, health and women’s empowerment," he said.

Jha said reports from JD(U) candidates suggested the NDA would win the election by a huge margin.

According to him, the electorate had voted rising above caste and religion in favour of development and stability.

Jha also reacted sharply to remarks by Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi, who said that nothing has been done for women in the last 20 years and accused the government of offering electoral bribes.

Hitting back at the Congress leader, Jha said, "Priyanka Gandhi does not know the reality of Bihar."

Asserting that a silent revolution had taken place in Bihar, he cited reservations for women in panchayats, the Kanya Utthan Yojana, the bicycle scheme, nutrition programmes and self-help groups as examples of women-focused initiatives under CM Nitish.

Jha further said that voters in Bihar were now far more aware and were voting for development based on logic and achievements, not emotions.

As voter turnout increased, political parties are reading the trend differently - the JD(U) claims it is pro-NDA, while the opposition says it reflects public anger.

The outcome will be known only when the results are declared.

The second phase of polling is scheduled on November 11, and the result will be announced on November 14.

--IANS

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