The much-awaited counting of votes for the Bihar Assembly elections kicked off on Friday morning amid stringent security measures across the state. Authorities have set up 46 counting centres in 38 districts, ensuring a smooth and secure process as officials begin opening the ballots.

In the state capital Patna, schools have been closed for the day to avoid congestion and to facilitate the large-scale counting exercise. Officials began tallying postal ballots first, followed by the counting of Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs), which commenced at around 8:30 am.

This election has been marked by an impressive voter turnout. Bihar recorded a historic participation rate of 67.13% during the polling held in two phases on November 6 and November 11. With 7.45 crore voters eligible to cast their ballots, the fate of 2,616 candidates contesting for 243 Assembly seats is now being decided.

Independent MP from Purnea, Pappu Yadav says, "We will have to accept this (early trends). This is highly unfortunate for Bihar. I can't say anything to the public, I just welcome their decision, but this is unfortunate for Bihar..."

NDA takes early lead in initial trends

Very early leads show the NDA ahead in the first phase of counting. According to India Today, NDA is ahead in 86 seats and the Mahagathbandhan in 48.