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Begusarai, November 6 (IANS) As the first phase of Bihar Assembly elections continues, Congress leader Kanhaiya Kumar on Thursday urged voters to convert their dissatisfaction with the government into a movement for change with the power of their votes.
Speaking to IANS, Kanhaiya Kumar said, “In a democracy, the first responsibility of every citizen is to participate in this important process. I appeal to all voters of Bihar to give priority to the first phase of voting above everything else. People we have interacted with are expressing frustration and dissatisfaction with the current government. We urge them to convert this dissatisfaction into change by voting.”
Earlier in the day, Kanhaiya Kumar also took to social media platform
Meanwhile, the first phase of Bihar Assembly elections began with over 3.75 crore voters deciding the fate of candidates in 121 constituencies out of the total 243 seats. This initial phase is important, especially for the opposition Grand Alliance (Grand Alliance), which had won 63 of these seats in the 2020 elections. The ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA) – which includes the BJP and the Janata Dal (United) – had secured 55 seats in the same constituencies.
This round of voting is also important for the smaller parties included in both the major alliances. The Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) or CPI (ML), which had the highest strike rate in 2020, will contest 10 of its 20 seats in this phase. Of these, the party currently has six seats. Retaining these constituencies is important for the CPI(ML) if it wants to maintain its past electoral performance.
Within the NDA, Chirag Paswan-led Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) or LJP (RV) is contesting 29 seats across Bihar, 10 of which fall in this first phase. Interestingly, the NDA currently holds only one of these ten seats.
Vikassheel Insaan Party (VIP), now part of the grand alliance, will also face a test of its electoral strength. Of the 15 seats it is contesting, six will go to polls in this first phase. The alliance has projected VIP chief Mukesh Sahni as its deputy chief ministerial candidate, increasing the risk of his party’s underperformance.
Many big leaders are in the fray in this phase. Opposition chief ministerial face and RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav will contest the elections along with over a dozen ministers of the Nitish Kumar-led NDA government. These also include Deputy Chief Ministers Samrat Chaudhary and Vijay Kumar Sinha.
This phase also involves many celebrities and public figures, adding glamor to the political fight. Young folk singer Maithili Thakur is contesting from Aliganj on a BJP ticket, while Bhojpuri cinema star Khesari Lal Yadav represents RJD in Chapra. Another Bhojpuri actor, Ritesh Pandey, is contesting from Karghar as a candidate of political strategist Prashant Kishor-led Jan Suraj Party.
–IANS
JK/DPB