Internal rift in grand alliance in Bihar, says BJP

The BJP on Wednesday (October 22, 2025) said a rift in the Mahagatbandhan (grand alliance) had stalled the finalisation of its list of candidates.

At a press conference, BJP spokesperson Sudhanshu Trivedi said, “There is no joint manifesto of the grand alliance, nor have they been able to decide on a candidate for Chief Minister or Deputy Chief Minister.” He said that after the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha had announced that it would contest the Bihar election independently, a clear message had been sent that the alliance was fragmenting in Jharkhand.

“Subsequently, the Congress brought in its expert, former Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot, who has considerable expertise in managing alliances, as demonstrated when six BSP legislators gave unconditional support to the Congress in Rajasthan, which he successfully handled,” said Mr. Trivedi, suggesting this move signalled the Congress’s potential influence and strategy towards the grand alliance partners.

“Possibly unsettled by these developments, (RJD leader) Tejashwi Yadav has begun making statements that not only question the credibility of his own claims but also seem to mock the electoral process itself. He has promised one government job to every family in Bihar. Any serious person can understand the impracticality of this promise,” Mr. Trivedi said.

“According to current projections, Bihar’s population is about 13.5 crore, and with an average of 4.2 persons per family; this amounts to about 3 crore families. Even after accounting for the 23 lakh government jobs already provided, about 2.9 crore families would remain. Providing a government job to each family, with salaries ranging from ₹30,000-₹35,000 to ₹2 lakh per month, would average around ₹70,000-₹75,000 per month per family,” Mr. Trivedi said. He said this would translate to roughly ₹10 lakh per year per family, and multiplying that by 2.9 crore families resulted in about ₹29 lakh crore, far exceeding Bihar’s annual budget of ₹3.17 lakh crore.

NDA’s efforts

On the other hand, he highlighted the “visible efforts” of the National Democratic Alliance and the BJP towards women’s empowerment and economic uplift. “The scheme providing ₹10,000 to 75 lakh women was not merely an announcement but fully implemented. Under Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, women’s and girls’ education in Bihar saw substantial progress. When the government first came to power, the female literacy rate was 33%, which has now risen to 74%,” he said.

He also stated that 33% reservation for women has been ensured in colleges, universities, government jobs, and panchayats; a dedicated women’s police force has been established; and the Sukanya Yojana has been running in Bihar for a long time.

Mr. Trivedi said women had faced “immense risks to their livelihood, life, and dignity” during RJD leader Lalu Prasad’s rule in Bihar.