Bihar polls: 54 pc voting till 3 pm, deputy CM alleges attack, Lalu calls for change of guard
Patna, (PTI): Polling was underway at a moderate pace on Thursday across 121 assembly constituencies of Bihar, where 53.77 per cent of 3.75 crore voters had exercised their franchise till 3 pm to decide the fate of over 1,000 candidates, even as Deputy Chief Minister Vijay Kumar Sinha alleged that his convoy was attacked by RJD supporters in his home turf Lakhisarai.
Stakes are high for both the ruling NDA and the opposition INDIA bloc in the first phase of the assembly elections, with several key leaders, including RJD’s Tejashwi Yadav, Deputy Chief Ministers Samrat Choudhary and Vijay Kumar Sinha, and several ministers, in the fray.
The ruling NDA, which has been in power in the state for 20 years, except for a few brief interruptions, is banking on its image of "sushasan" (good governance) in contrast to the alleged "jungle raj" that marked the 15 years old rule of the RJD-Congress combine.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who addressed rallies in a couple of constituencies going to polls in the second and final phase, felt that the noticeably high number of women turning up to vote was a good sign for the NDA.
"Mothers, daughters and sisters have been the worst sufferers of 'jungle raj'. Today, they seem to have put up a fortress around polling booths to prevent the return of 'jungle raj'", Modi had remarked.
The NDA hopes that Chief Minister Nitish Kumar’s record, along with recent welfare measures such as 125 units of free power, Rs 10,000 cash transfers to over one crore women, and an increase in social security pensions, will help counter anti-incumbency.
However, the opposition dismissed the boasts of the BJP-led coalition and hoped that people would vote for a change.
RJD president Lalu Prasad, who hopes that his younger son and heir apparent Tejashwi Yadav will form the next government, came out with an evocative social media post, drawing the analogy of a "roti".
"If a roti is not flipped on a tawa (pan), it gets burnt. Twenty years is a long time. A Tejashwi government is essential to build a new Bihar", Prasad wrote on X.
There have also been allegations and counter-allegations from both sides on polling day.
Deputy CM Sinha, who is seeking a fourth consecutive term from Lakhisarai, claimed that one of the cars in his convoy was attacked by RJD supporters trying to “intimidate” voters belonging to extremely backward classes.
On the other hand, the RJD alleged on its X handle that voting had been "deliberately slowed down" in areas where the INDIA bloc was strongly placed, a charge promptly rejected by the Election Commission.
A notable feature of this election has been the presence of Prashant Kishor’s Jan Suraaj Party, which the former political strategist believes could emerge as the proverbial dark horse.
Kishor has caught public imagination with his promise of making the state "among the top-ranking ones in the country", and to this end, he has not shied away from making a few bold statements, including his public announcement that he intends to scrap the prohibition law, which has been bleeding the state dry.
Polling was being held across 18 districts, with Muzaffarpur and Gopalganj reporting turnouts above 58 per cent till 3 pm, while in state capital Patna it was 48.69 per cent.
The low turnout in Patna was largely attributed to urban constituencies such as Bankipur (34.80 per cent), Digha (31.89 per cent) and Kumhrar (37.73 per cent), where electors are known to be unenthusiastic.
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South African police arrest suspect in mass shooting that killed 12, including 3 children
Johannesburg (AP): A 32-year-old suspect has been arrested in connection with a mass shooting which claimed the lives of 12 people including three children at an unlicensed pub earlier this month, South African police said on Monday.
The man is suspected of being one of the three people who opened fire on patrons in a pub at Saulsville township, west of South Africa's capital Pretoria, killing 12 people including three children aged 3, 12 and 16.
At least 13 people were also injured during the attack, whose motive remains unknown.
According to the police, the suspect was arrested on Sunday while traveling to Botlokwa in Limpopo province, more than 340 km from where the mass shooting took place on Dec 6.
An unlicensed firearm believed to have been used during the attack was recovered from the suspect's vehicle.
“The 32-year-old suspect was intercepted by Limpopo Tracking Team on the R101 Road in Westenburg precinct. During the arrest, the team recovered an unlicensed firearm, a hand gun, believed to have been used in the commission of the multiple murders. The firearm will be taken to the Forensic Science Laboratory for ballistic analysis,” police said in statement.
The suspect was arrested on the same day that another mass shooting at a pub took place in the Bekkersdal township, west of Johannesburg, in which nine people were killed and 10 wounded when unknown gunmen opened fire on patrons.
Police have since launched a search for the suspects.
South Africa has one of the highest homicide rates in the world and recorded more than 26,000 homicides in 2024 — an average of more than 70 a day. Firearms are by far the leading cause of death in homicides.
The country of 62 million people has relatively strict gun ownership laws, but many killings are committed with illegal guns, according to authorities.
According to police, mass shootings at unlicensed bars are becoming a serious problem. Police shut down more than 11,000 illegal taverns between April and September this year and arrested more than 18,000 people for involvement in illegal liquor sales.
