Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader Lalu Prasad Yadav’s two daughters are running in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections in Bihar. According to India Today-Axis My India exit polls, one of Lalu’s daughters is expected to have an edge, while the other is falling behind in the election race.
His eldest daughter, Misa Bharti, is contesting for the third time in Pataliputra, competing against BJP MP Ram Kripal Yadav, who is seeking his third consecutive victory. Lalu‘s other daughter, Rohini Acharya, is the RJD candidate for the Saran seat, challenging BJP’s Rajiv Pratap Rudy.
The exit polls forecast a third term for Prime Minister Narendra Modi, with the BJP-led NDA anticipated to secure about 350 seats. In Bihar, the NDA is predicted to show strong performance, with the BJP expected to win 13-15 seats and its ally Janata Dal (United) projected to secure 9-11 seats. Bihar has a total of 40 Lok Sabha seats.
Saran: Rajiv Pratap Rudy vs Rohini Acharya
According to the India Today-Axis My India exit poll, former Union minister Rajiv Pratap Rudy is anticipated to win the Saran Lok Sabha seat in Bihar against Rohini Acharya, securing the constituency for a third consecutive term, a seat previously held by Lalu Prasad.
Pataliputra: Ram Kripal Yadav vs Misa Bharti
In the previous two Lok Sabha elections, Lalu Prasad’s daughter, Misa Bharti, was defeated by BJP candidate Ram Kripal Yadav. In this election, Ram Kripal Yadav is once again running against Misa Bharti. However, the Axis My India exit poll now indicates that Misa Bharti has an advantage over her former ally.
In the 2024 elections, the NDA saw the BJP contesting 17 seats, Janata Dal (United) vying for 16 seats, Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) contesting 5 seats, and both Hindustani Awam Morcha and Rashtriya Lok Morcha each contesting 1 seat. Meanwhile, under the INDIA bloc agreement in Bihar, the RJD contested 26 seats, the Congress 9 seats, and the Left parties took the remaining 5 seats.
Bihar, with the fourth highest number of Lok Sabha constituencies, held elections across all seven phases, making it a crucial political battleground. Deputy CM Samrat Choudhary credited NDA’s exit poll victory to PM Modi’s decade of achievements, surpassing those of any prime minister in 70 years.
Bihar Congress chief Akhilesh Prasad Singh predicted Congress would win 6-7 of the 9 seats it contested, and the INDIA bloc, including RJD and Congress, would win around 20 of 40 seats in Bihar.