The battle for Bihar turned into a fierce war of words, with Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra accusing the BJP and the Election Commission of “stealing elections,” and Union home minister Amit Shah hitting back at the siblings.

At a poll rally on Thursday, while the first phase of polling was on for 121 Assembly seats, Rahul alleged that the BJP “wins elections everywhere by stealing votes.”

“We have shown the entire world that the BJP and the Election Commission have stolen the Haryana election. I am sure that they would try to steal votes in Bihar, too. It is the responsibility of Bihar’s youth to put a stop to this, and save the Constitution. All of you need to be cautious at the polling booths,” he said.

On Wednesday Rahul gave a presentation which he claimed as foolproof evidence of how votes had been manipulated in last November’s Assembly polls in Haryana.

The Congress leader accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of wanting a “rule of billionaires where the youth remain jobless.” In Araria, he went a step further, calling Modi and Amit Shah the architects of “jungle raj” in the country.

“Nitish Kumar talks about ‘jungle raj’ in Bihar. But it is the PM and Amit Shah who have imposed ‘jungle raj’ in Delhi, in the entire country, which is witnessing the rule of the ED, CBI, IT, hatred and unemployment. This is the true ‘jungle raj’,” Rahul said.

He accused the prime minister of dividing the country on the basis of caste and religion, and said Nitish Kumar had turned Bihar’s youth into labourers.

The Wayanad MP Priyanka Gandhi, campaigning in Sitamarhi and East Champaran, accused the BJP of preparing to “steal” the Bihar election “just like they did in Haryana.”

“Just like they stole the entire election in Haryana, they are preparing to do the same in Bihar by deleting 65 lakh votes from the rolls,” she said.

She alleged that the Election Commission was “colluding with the government to weaken our Constitution and democratic rights.” “Rahul Gandhi's fight is for you and truth; he is fighting the same battle that Mahatma Gandhi once fought,” she said.

Naming Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar and his colleagues in the central poll panel Vivek Joshi and S. S. Sandhu, Priyanka accused them of “mocking the Constitution and democracy of India.”

Her warning was blunt: “If you think you will lead a convenient life after retirement, that is not going to happen.”

She said the NDA government “has no respect for the people of Bihar” and accused the BJP of asking for votes in the name of religion, not development.

“If this election is free and fair, the people of Bihar will uproot this government and vote for one that will work for the poor, women and the youth,” she said.

Taking a dig at the prime minister, she said, “He is the prime minister of India. Does he not have any other work than measuring the size of opposition leaders' images on posters?”

Amit Shah, meanwhile, tore into the Gandhis during rallies in Madhubani, West Champaran and Motihari.

“Rahul Gandhi should be ashamed for seeking to know about the caste and religion of Army jawans. We do not discriminate among military personnel on the basis of caste or creed,” he said.

He accused the RJD of a history “filled with massacres and rapes” and declared that “there is no place for 'bahubalis' (strongmen) in the NDA government.”

Calling the election a battle to make Bihar “infiltrator-free,” Shah warned that a return of Lalu Prasad’s alliance would spell chaos.

“Prime Minister Narendra Modi established the Makhana Board... if 'Lalu & co' come to power, 'infiltrator ghusao board' will be set up,” he said. “Only the pair of Narendra Modi and Nitish Kumar can prevent 'jungle raj' in Bihar.”

Shah had earlier claimed that if voted to power the BJP-led government will deport infiltrators. However, the special intensive revision of electoral rolls which was conducted to identify “foreign nationals” has not stated with any certainty on the number of alleged foreigners who were identified following the exercise.

He accused “Lalu Prasad and Rahul Gandhi of trying to pave the way for infiltrators,” and warned that “Champaran would turn into 'mini-Chambal' if 'thagbandhan' comes to power.”

Shah reminded voters of Bihar’s political legacy: “Bihar waged a war against Indira Gandhi's corruption, opposed the Emergency, but now Congress is seeking to rule the state with RJD's help.”

Making a slew of promises, Shah said Champaran would get a new airport, all closed sugar mills would be revived through cooperatives, and a new medical college would come up in Motihari.

“Neither Lalu Prasad nor Rahul Gandhi can prevent the construction of a grand Sita temple in Sitamarhi within two-and-half years,” he said.

In the "highest ever" voter turnout in Bihar, nearly 65 per cent of 3.75 crore electors exercised their franchise on Thursday across 121 constituencies in the first phase of the assembly elections.

Bihar Deputy chief minister Vijay Kumar Sinha alleged that his convoy had been attacked by workers of the main Opposition party, RJD, who were trying to "intimidate" voters in the area.

Reacting to the alleged incident, Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar directed the DGP to take "immediate action".