Prime Minister Narendra Modi has made Bihar his new base.
The number of rallies the Prime Minister has addressed in Bihar suggests he has never taken any election this seriously.
For the 243-seat polls, Modi has addressed 26 rallies after chief election commissioner Nasim Zaidi on September 9 announced the dates for the Assembly elections.
However, before the model code of conduct could set in, Modi had already addressed five Parivartan Yatras starting from Muzaffarpur on July 25.
During the Bihar elections, the Prime Minister has addressed 31 rallies, four more than the Maharashtra Assembly elections held last year.
Four more Parivartan Yatras in Bhagalpur, Gaya, Ara and Saharsa followed the Muzaffarpur rally.
At the Ara rally on August 18, Modi announced an unprecedented Rs 1.25 lakh crore package for Bihar, bringing the state's heated electioneering to a boil.
If one goes by the number of rallies Modi has addressed in Bihar, it is the highest clocked in any Assembly elections.
During the 2014 Maharashtra elections, Modi addressed 27 rallies for the 288-seat Assembly. Riding on the Modi wave, the BJP had for the first time crossed the three-digit figure by winning 122 seats. But the party fell short of reaching the magic figure of 145 on its own.
In Bihar, Modi kick started his election campaign on October 2 (Gandhi Jayanti) from Banka.
Followed by the Banka rally, Modi addressed nine rallies in different parts of the state for the first and second phases.
On October 25, the Modi rally gained momentum with the PM holding 17 rallies in nine days till November 2. That day, he addressed three rallies in Purnea, Forbesganj and last at Darbhanga.
Election in 57 seats in the Seemanchal, Mithilanchal and Kosi regions will be held on November 5.
According to sources, since the Prime Minister is the biggest crowd-puller of the party, he has taken upon himself most of rallies and public meetings in Bihar.
Awadesh Kumar Singh, the BJP candidate from Hajipur where Modi addressed a rally on October 25, said: "After Modiji addressed a rally in my constituency, the momentum changed in the BJP's favour. Not a single state leader or an Union minister can match up with the Modi magic."
Echoing the views of Awadesh, BJP candidate from Benipatti in Madhubani, said: "On Sunday, the PM addressed a massive rally in Madhubani. The rally has given a huge thrust to our party. It would definitely perform better in Madhubani after the PM's address."
Sources said Modi paid added attention to Bihar is because he wants to increase the NDA tally in the Rajya Sabha.
Of the 245 seats in the Rajya Sabha, the NDA has 64. Important bills such as the land acquisition, goods and services tax are pending in the Rajya Sabha, as the BJP-led NDA does not have enough strength.
Sources, however, said even if the BJP wrests Bihar, the party's Rajya Sabha tally would certainly improve but not to the extent of bagging a majority on their own.
