The Londoner

The Nitish Kumar-led grand alliance on Sunday looked set to form the next government in Bihar, possibly with a three-fourths majority, an outcome which was shaped by a combination of factors. The chief factor that swung what was all along seen as a close election in favour of the alliance was the consolidation of Yadav and Muslim votes as well as support from Kumar’s primary constituency of Kurmi voters. For the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the remarks by RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat that time had come to re-look at the reservation policy just ahead of the poll turned out to be a self-goal for the party. The National Democratic Alliance (NDA) leaders tried to counter this but by the time the defence came, it was too late. Yadav and other backward castes, who control about 60% of the Bihar electorate, benefit from the government’s affirmative action. Kumar’s clean image and his projection as the chief minister candidate also did the magic for  the grand alliance...