Bihar voting to reject jungle raj; celebrating festival of democracy for development: Nitayanand Rai

Hajipur (Bihar) [India], November 6 (ANI): Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader and Union Minister of state for Home Affairs Nityanand Rai on Thursday expressed confidence in the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) winning the Bihar Assembly election as the people are voting to "reject jungle raj" and exercise their right to bring in a developed Bihar.
"I have full faith that NDA will win. The people of Bihar are celebrating this festival of democracy for development and voting to reject 'jungle raj'. I request everyone to go to polling booths and cast their votes, Bihar has been the mother of democracy," he told ANI.
Rai, also a BJP MP from Bihar's Ujiarpur parliamentary constituency, also cast his vote in the Hajipur area under Vaishali district early this morning.
"Bihar is the mother of democracy. The people of Bihar celebrate this festival of democracy with great enthusiasm. I appeal to the public to cast their vote and celebrate this festival of democracy.
Earlier on Thursday, amid the ongoing voting for the first phase of Bihar Assembly elections, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that the enthusiasm witnessed among voters indicates NDA is going to get an "unprecedented majority" in the Assembly elections.
Prime Minister Modi is also set to address two rallies in Bihar on Thursday as part of his election campaigning for the second phase of the Bihar Assembly elections. He will address a public meeting in Forbesganj of Araria district at around 11.30 am, while the second public meeting will be held in Bhagalpur at around 1.30 pm.
In a post on X, the Prime Minister expressed his excitement, saying, "The grand festival of democracy in Bihar is witnessing an amazing enthusiasm among the people, which indicates that the NDA is going to get an unprecedented majority in the Assembly elections. In this energetic atmosphere, I am eager to receive the blessings of my family members at the public meetings in Forbesganj, Araria, around 11:30 AM and in Bhagalpur around 1:30 PM."
Voting for the first phase of the 2025 Assembly elections in Bihar began on Thursday at 7.00 am across 121 constituencies in 18 districts for the state's 243 seats, with approximately 3.75 crore electors casting their ballot.
Polling will conclude at 6 pm; however, due to security considerations, polling time has been curtailed to 5 pm in some constituencies.
According to the Election Commission, there are 10.72 lakh 'new electors', and 7.78 lakh voters are in the age group of 18-19 years. The total population of these constituencies, as stated by the Election Commission, is 6.60 crore.
There are a total of 122 women candidates in the fray in the first phase of polls. Jan Suraj Party fielded 119 candidates in this phase. Within NDA, JD(U) is contesting 57 seats, followed by BJP on 48 and LJP (Ram Vilas) on 14.
In the 2020 Bihar Assembly elections, polling took place in three phases. The National Democratic Alliance (NDA) secured 125 seats, while the opposition won 110. Among the major parties, the Janata Dal (United) bagged 43 seats and the Congress 19. The JD(U) had contested 115 constituencies and the BJP 110, whereas the RJD contested 144 seats and the Congress 70. (ANI)