Patna: Amid the opposition pressing for the reintroduction of the ballot paper system for voting in the aftermath of the Maharashtra poll disaster, RJD chief Lalu Prasad on Friday strongly advocated for returning to the old system of voting, claiming the INDIA bloc would win next year’s assembly elections in Bihar.
“Ballot papers se chunav hona chahiye (The elections must be conducted through the use of ballot papers),” Lalu told reporters in Delhi where he went for a routine health check-up.
The demand for doing away with the EVMs gained momentum after the opposition front badly lost to the BJP-led alliance in the recently held assembly elections in Maharashtra. The issue took centre stage when Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge demanded EVMs be set aside, alleging that votes of marginalised communities were being lost.
Expressing confidence in winning next year’s assembly elections in Bihar, Lalu rejected CM Nitish Kumar as any threat to the opposition. “Nitish ko dekha hai aur dekh lenge (We have seen Nitish and will see him),” Lalu said, claiming the opposition would return to power with an absolute majority.
Although the NDA has not officially announced going to polls under Nitish’s leadership, the alliance partners routinely claim that the CM would lead the poll campaign. The NDA’s morale was boosted after they won the by-elections to all four seats in the state — wresting three seats from the opposition alliance.