The 2025 Bihar Assembly election results delivered a sweeping mandate in favor of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), led primarily by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Janata Dal (United). As the vote-counting progressed and trends became clear, the opposition Mahagathbandhan appeared headed for one of its most disappointing performances in recent years. In the midst of the unfolding numbers, a notable reaction came from within the INDIA bloc itself, as a senior member of Uddhav Thackeray’s Shiv Sena (UBT) issued a blunt public message to the Congress: if it hopes to challenge the BJP, it must learn to work with the same intensity, discipline, and grassroots focus that has long been the BJP’s hallmark.

According to the Election Commission’s data released around 3 pm on the day of counting, the Congress, which contested 61 constituencies in Bihar, was leading in only three. This was an especially stark outcome for a national party that remains a central pillar of the INDIA opposition alliance. The broader Mahagathbandhan, consisting mainly of the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), Congress, and smaller allies, was ahead in around 37 seats—far short of the halfway mark. Meanwhile, the NDA was leading in more than 200 of the 243 seats, a show of strength that underscored both organizational efficiency and voter consolidation in their favor.

It was against this backdrop that Shiv Sena (UBT) spokesperson Anand Dubey registered his discontent and offered unsolicited but pointed advice to the Congress party. Speaking to the media, Dubey said that if the opposition wanted any realistic chance of defeating the BJP, it would need to emulate the ruling party’s political work culture. According to him, the BJP’s relentless, round-the-clock election machinery, combined with its deep presence on the ground, gave it a significant and consistent advantage. Dubey argued that the Congress, by contrast, seemed far too removed from grassroots political life, spending more time in offices than among people.

He asserted that success in Indian elections is no longer possible through periodic engagements or selective campaigning. Instead, he said, the Congress must adopt a full-time political posture, spending time in villages, urban pockets, and local communities, listening to concerns, building networks, and demonstrating visible commitment to public issues. His criticism was that too many Congress leaders remain confined to air-conditioned rooms, detached from the daily struggles of ordinary voters, while the BJP sustains a permanent campaign-style presence in every corner of the country.

Dubey’s remarks also reflected a broader frustration within the INDIA alliance, which had hoped that Bihar would offer a strong counter-narrative to the BJP’s dominance at the national level. Bihar has historically been fertile ground for anti-BJP alliances, with caste-based mobilization, regional parties, and anti-incumbency forces often playing significant roles. However, the early 2025 results suggested that these dynamics were no longer sufficient to unseat the NDA, particularly with Nitish Kumar—one of the state’s longest-serving chief ministers—once again consolidating his position with the BJP’s backing.

While the Shiv Sena (UBT) leader acknowledged the Mahagathbandhan’s internal efforts, he maintained that the Congress’s structural weaknesses were proving to be a recurring setback across states. The results in Bihar, he suggested, were not simply a verdict on regional politics but also indicative of national-level organizational gaps. Dubey insisted that unless Congress leaders were ready to put in the same tireless work as BJP workers—who often operate year-round with disciplined booth-level strategies—the opposition would continue to lag behind.

His critique came even as RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav had earlier expressed confidence, before counting began, that the Mahagathbandhan would form the government. Yadav, the alliance’s chief ministerial candidate, had claimed that his party was in touch with the ground reality and that voters were ready for a change. However, as the numbers poured in, the RJD’s performance too fell short of expectations, reinforcing concerns among alliance partners about the need for more cohesive, persistent, and grassroots-oriented political engagement.

The 2025 Bihar assembly elections were conducted in two phases, on November 6 and 11. Both phases saw strong voter participation, with turnout figures of 65.08 percent and 68.76 percent respectively. The overall voter turnout for the state stood at a historic 66.91 percent. Such high levels of public participation typically reflect an electorate that is deeply engaged and motivated, yet the final trends showed that much of this enthusiasm translated into support for the NDA.

The counting of votes began at 8 am on November 14, and within a few hours, the direction of the results became clear. With a total of 243 seats in the assembly, the majority mark stood at 122. The NDA’s significant lead meant that not only had it crossed this threshold, but it had done so with a margin large enough to eliminate uncertainty. This outcome effectively paved the way for Nitish Kumar to extend his already two-decade-long political tenure at the helm of the state, reinforcing his status as one of the most enduring figures in contemporary Indian politics.

The Congress’s underwhelming performance in Bihar echoed similar struggles it has faced in other states. For the Shiv Sena (UBT) and other INDIA bloc partners, this raised questions about the national opposition’s preparedness to take on the BJP in any meaningful way. Dubey’s comments, while harsh, highlighted an urgent truth recognized by many within the political landscape: defeating the BJP requires not only unity among opposition parties but also a dramatic transformation in how the Congress organizes, campaigns, and communicates with voters.

For now, the 2025 Bihar election results stand as both a mandate for stability under the NDA and a stark reminder to the opposition—especially the Congress—of the need for structural reform. As coalition partners reflect on the lessons from this defeat, the question remains whether the opposition will adopt the rigorous, on-the-ground political culture that figures like Anand Dubey are calling for, or whether the BJP’s dominance will continue unchallenged in the foreseeable future.