Bihar Election 2025: Can NDA Risk Angering Kushwaha Again? He Shook 20 Seats Last Time

Bihar Election 2025: The NDA has announced seat-sharing for the Bihar Assembly by-elections, but the political turmoil shows no signs of abating. Now the big turn has come for Upendra Kushwaha, who, along with his party, Rashtriya Lok Samta Party (RLSP), is upset with NDA. Efforts were made to convince him till late at night, but he did not agree. Deputy CM Samrat Chaudhary and BJP leaders Nityanand Rai, Nitin Naveen and Rituraj Sinha reached his house, but instead of improving things, things got worse. BJP leaders quietly came out with folded hands and left without saying anything to the media. Kushwaha clearly said, "Nothing is well in NDA."

Patna meeting postponed; discussion with Shah in Delhi

Kushwaha had called his leaders for the Patna meeting but later announced in a Facebook post that he was leaving for Delhi with Nityanand Rai for discussions with Union Home Minister Amit Shah. Due to this, the Patna meeting was postponed. Sources say that this step is the last attempt to repair the rift in NDA, but Kushwaha's anger is not going away easily. He has given strict instructions to his workers not to take part in the nomination of any NDA candidate.

Root of resentment... Claim rejected on Mahua seat

Quoting sources, it is reported that the main reason for Kushwaha's displeasure is the change of seats. NDA had given them six seats like Madhubani, Ujiarpur, Bajpatti, Mahua, Dinara and Mahua, but the Mahua seat was snatched by LJP. This enraged Kushwaha. After LJP's claim, he openly came into the field. NDA looks strong on some of the total 243 seats in the by-elections, but the equation may get spoiled due to lack of support from Kushwaha. RJD has distributed symbols to its candidates here—Tejashwi Yadav will contest from Raghopur and Alok Mehta from Ujiarpur.

NDA defeated on 13 seats in 2020

Upendra Kushwaha's political journey has been full of ups and downs. In 2010, he was with JDU; in 2015 he contested elections with BJP and in 2020 he entered the fray by forming a third front. In the 2020 assembly elections, he contested 99 seats, securing 1.77% of the votes, but did not win a single seat himself. Nevertheless, their votes helped defeat the NDA on 13 seats. This time the NDA tried to keep him with them at the central level, even sending him to the Rajya Sabha after the Lok Sabha elections, but the seat dispute in the by-elections spoiled everything.

Kushwaha Vote Bank: 4.21% of the population 

4.21% of Bihar's population belongs to the Kushwaha caste, which has traditionally been NDA voters. Kushwaha is a big leader of this community, but in the Lok Sabha elections, his voters supported the INDIA alliance in many seats, which shocked the NDA. Due to this fear, BJP had sent him to Rajya Sabha. Now, due to his displeasure, NDA may face difficulties in the Magadha and Shahabad regions. Experts believe that the Kushwaha factor can overturn the results of the by-election.

20 seats where Kushwaha can spoil the equation

There are at least 20 such seats in Bihar, where Kushwaha votes can play a decisive role. These include Sugauli, Bajpatti, Belsand, Kudhni, Siwan, Badharia, Maharajganj, Bakhri, Bhagalpur, Dhoraiya, Islampur, Buxar, Mohania, Bhabua, Dinara, Goh, Nabinagar, Bodhgaya, Atri and Sikandra. Boycott of Kushwaha workers on these seats can prove to be a big blow for NDA. By-election dates are near, and NDA will have to convince Kushwaha soon; otherwise, the political equations can be reversed. Will the discussion in Delhi help? The coming days will tell.