'Margin less than 3000-5000 over 65 seats': RJD's Manoj Jha says 'situation may change' as trends show NDA win

Manoj Jha

The Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) has alleged that the counting in Bihar is "extremely slow" and that there is a "psychological game" being played out, speaking on the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) crossing the majority mark.

According to latest trends, the NDA is leading over 201 seats, with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) at 90, Janata Dal United (JD(U)) and Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) (LJPRV) at 23 seats.

RJD MP Manoj Jha claimed that there is a psychological game going on and that the vote counting is extremely slow. He said that there are 65 to 70 seats where the vote margin is less than 3,000 to 5,000 votes, asserting that situation can change in those seats, dubbing the projections as initial trends.

"The counting of votes is underway. There's also a psychological game going on. We found that in more than 65-70 seats, the margin is less than 3000-5000 votes, and we are sure that the situation can change in those seats. The vote count is extremely slow. This is just an initial trend; we have seen such trends change by the end," said Manoj Jha.

Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav attacked the BJP for "being a party of deceit" saying that Bihar underwent a 'game of SIR' and that the PDA (Picchde, Dalit, Alpsankhyak) of the party won't let that be replicates in states like West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh and Tamil Nadu.

Senior Congress leader Bhupesh Baghel took a swipe at Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar, saying he played a "crucial" role in the Bihar assembly elections and was "responsible" for the poll outcome as trends show that the NDA is set to register a big win.

The former Chhattisgarh chief minister also said things were "clear" the way the Election Commission functioned.

Talking to PTI, Baghel, who is Congress' senior observer for Bihar elections, said, "The trends indicate that the NDA is heading towards a three-fourth majority. (Union Home Minister) Amit Shah had already spoken about this (outcome). If there is one person responsible for this entire election (result), it is Gyanesh Kumar. Congratulations and best wishes to him in advance for this."

Asked why he was blaming Gyanesh Kumar, Baghel said, "The way the Election Commission functioned, it made everything clear. Therefore, whoever is responsible will be congratulated. Gyanesh Kumar ji's role was crucial in this entire election, so many congratulations and best wishes to him".

On being asked why the Congress keeps forging an alliance with the RJD if the latter's image is that of 'jungle raj', he said, "Those born 20 years ago don't know about the jungle raj. They know about the current jungle raj. Everyone across the country knows about the jungle raj of Modi and Shah." This is a matter of setting the narrative. Congratulations to Gyanesh Kumar for this, he added.

On questions being raised about the role of the electronic voting machines (EVMs), he said, "There are many more things that will come out."

With inputs from PTI