Srinivasan says ‘even Nitish’s fiercest rivals did not criticise him during the campaign’
What went horribly wrong for Rahul-Tejashwi in Bihar? | Talking Sense With Srini
While the BJP outperformed its ally in seat share due to its ‘well-oiled election juggernaut’, the legitimacy of the mandate rests squarely with Chief Minister Nitish Kumar
Bihar delivered a sweeping mandate to the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), with the coalition crossing the 200-seat mark in the 2025 Assembly elections and relegating the Mahagathbandhan to a distant second.
In Talking Sense With Srini, The Federal’s Editor-in-Chief S Srinivasan broke down the verdict, calling it “a mandate primarily for Nitish Kumar, powered by the BJP’s organisational machinery".
Nitish’s reputation for governance, personal integrity
According to Srinivasan, while the BJP outperformed its ally in seat share due to its “well-oiled election juggernaut”, the legitimacy of the mandate rests squarely with Chief Minister Nitish Kumar.
Also Read: Cash transfers and other incentives likely key to NDA's sweep in Bihar
“Even his fiercest rivals did not criticise him during the campaign,” he noted, attributing this unusual political consensus to Kumar’s reputation for governance and personal integrity.
Vital role of women voters
Srinivasan argued that women voters played a decisive role. Bihar recorded a 9–10 percentage point gap between female and male turnout, with women “voting strongly for Nitish” owing to targetted interventions like bicycles for schoolgirls, sanitary pad schemes, and liquor prohibition, which he said helped curb domestic violence and street harassment.
Rahul’s inconsistency
On the Mahagathbandhan’s collapse, Srinivasan said Rahul Gandhi’s inconsistency hurt the alliance. Despite an early surge during his joint campaign with Tejashwi Yadav, Rahul “vanished for 40 days” and remained absent even on counting day.
Also Read: Why Bihar lost before a single vote was cast
This stop-start leadership, combined with poor ticket distribution and internal bickering, “certainly harmed the alliance”, he said. The Congress, he said, “could not complete the narrative it started”, lacking organisational depth and sustained leadership to convert issues into electoral gains.
AIMIM – possible vote-splitter
On the BJP’s improved performance in Muslim-dominated regions, Srinivasan urged caution until vote-share data is available, although he pointed to the AIMIM’s rise as a possible vote-splitter.
Looking ahead, Srinivasan said the verdict strengthens the Centre’s hand on implementing the contentious SIR exercise, predicting a “far more aggressive” rollout in upcoming election-bound states.
Also Read: What led to Tejashwi Yadav's downfall? Here are some possible hints
As for Prashant Kishor’s Jan Suraaj Party, Srinivasan said it would be “premature to write him off,” noting that even a modest vote share could give him future political traction.
