Bihar assembly election 2025: A new era of peaceful voting as 'Jungle Raj' gives way to zero re-polling

Patna (The Uttam Hindu): This year's Bihar Assembly elections have set several records. For the first time in Bihar's political history, a record 67.13 percent voter turnout was recorded. Furthermore, Bihar has also transitioned from "jungle raj" to "zero re-polling."

No re-polling was required at any polling booth in Bihar. There were zero incidents of violence during voting. Overall, this election witnessed a clean and violence-free voting process.

The RJD's rule, which the opposition calls "jungle raj," saw the highest incidence of electoral fraud and re-polls during Bihar elections. Elections were marred by violence, murders, booth capturing, and fraudulent voting.

According to statistics, 63 murders occurred during the 1985 Bihar assembly elections, forcing re-polls in 156 polling booths. In the 1990 assembly elections, when the Janata Dal, a coalition of several smaller parties, won power in the state, there were approximately 87 deaths.

In the 1995 elections, the Janata Dal, led by Lalu Yadav, performed better than in previous elections, but incidents of violence and electoral fraud increased. The then-Election Commissioner, T.N. Seshan, had to postpone the Bihar elections four times due to unprecedented violence and electoral fraud.

In the 2005 elections, re-polling was conducted at 660 polling stations due to violence and malpractices. That year, the Nitish Kumar-led JDU also came to power for the first time.

Since 2005, the law and order situation in the state has significantly improved, and incidents of electoral violence and electoral fraud have decreased. The 2025 Assembly elections are a recent example. This year, no re-elections were called in any constituency. Furthermore, there were no incidents of violence during voting.