PATNA: The NDA took an early lead as counting began for the Bihar Assembly elections on Friday. Vote counting started under tight security for all 243 constituencies, election officials said.
Following Election Commission guidelines, postal ballots were counted first, with the tallying of EVM votes beginning at 8:30 am. Counting operations were carried out from 8 a.m. across 46 centres spread over 38 districts.
This year’s two-phase election is widely viewed as a crucial verdict on Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, the JD(U) president and the state’s longest-serving leader.