The 2025 Bihar elections might be a fight between Janata Dal (United)'s Nitish Kumar and Rashtriya Janata Dal's Tejashwi Yadav, but its results can have repercussions in New Delhi.

Prime Minister Narendra’s Modi’s government is propped up by the support of two parties, one of them being Nitish Kumar’s JD(U).

The Mahagathbandhan, of which the Congress and RJD are a part of, have already declared Tejashwi Yadav as their Chief Ministerial face. The National Democratic Alliance consisting of the Bharatiya Janata Party, JD(U) and other regional parties will be fighting the elections "in the name of PM Narendra Modi and CM Nitish Kumar."While the Mahagathbandhan have a lot to fight for in the upcoming elections, it is the BJP-led NDA that have more to lose, because if JDU falls in Patna, what will happen in Delhi next is up in the air.

Speaking to The Telegraph, the Congress and BJP laid it out all - from what is at stake in Bihar, to the factors that will influence this year's elections.

Will the Bihar elections be PM Narendra Modi's litmus test

The BJP and the NDA have their clear leadership under Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chief Minister Nitish Kumar. There is a section of the media which will always have an election as a litmus test for PM Modi, despite the fact that Rahul Gandhi has lost 90 elections and PM Modi continues to be in governance in the last 22 years.

Pradeep Bhandari, Spokesperson, BJP

The Bihar elections is not a straight fight between Nitish Kumar and Tejashwi Yadav. The fight for Bihar is between the residents and a corrupt government. They are fighting against a government that has destroyed the lives of millions in the past 20 years, by not giving them jobs and them eventually exceeding the age criteria. Hired millions of people on contract. The level of corruption is so high that a constable posted in the CM house became a millionaire. Corruption, unemployment, vote-stealing - this is what Bihar is fighting against. You saw how BJP lost seats in UP during the Lok Sabha elections. Now you will see how the people of Bihar express this anger and disgust towards the PM Modi led NDA government, and they will lose.

Asit Nath Tiwari, Spokesperson, Congress

Seat sharing and hiccups with allies

There have only been hiccups in the Mahagathbandan where despite several days, the Mahagathbandan despite declaring Tejashwi Yadav as their official face, did not have Rahul Gandhi’s picture in the joint press conference. Whereas here, we have been in governance and a clear leadership of PM Modi and CM Nitish Kumar, and every leader of the NDA whether it is Chirag Paswan or Jitan Ram Manjhi, Upendra Kushwaha accepts their leadership.

Pradeep Bhandari, Spokesperson, BJP

Seat sharing is an issue that every party or alliance faces at some level or another. In a democracy, you have every right to protest or disagree. We operate through a democratic system, we don’t use the Enforcement Directorate to threaten our alliance partners. We have had some issues on five-six seats. If there are issues in five-six seats out of 243 seats, then I don’t think it should be considered a big deal.

Asit Nath Tiwari, Spokesperson, Congress

Will the recent GST cuts help the BJP?

The GST cuts done by the union government were not done vis-a-vis any elections. But what I can definitely tell you for sure is that the reports that we are getting across the country, and it is agnostic to states, is that the middle class and the common man are extremely happy. Because there has been a huge demand surge, and there is huge money which has been put in the pocket of the middle class. So definitely, the middle class and the common man, whether it is in Bihar, Bengal or Delhi, all of them are equally happy.

Pradeep Bhandari, Spokesperson, BJP

But to look at it from an electoral or political point of view will not be correct - it will be a very narrow prism to look at. The way we are looking at it is that it has given a boost to the fastest growing economy in a turbulent global environment.

Pradeep Bhandari, Spokesperson, BJP

There is no possibility or probability of it, because eight years ago, this same Modi government implemented GST to loot people - poor people, middle class have all been looted by them. Now that they are losing elections, that’s why they are cutting GST. Who had implemented GST? The same Modiji. Who had protested against the GST slabs? Us!.

Asit Nath Tiwari, Spokesperson, Congress

What is Nitish Kumar's political future?

He doesn’t have a future. There are two main reasons for that. One is that he is not well. He is mentally not healthy. I don’t know why people instead of treating him have kept him on the (CM) seat. The other reason is that the BJP has planned to keep the alliance together till the elections, because Nitish Kumar still appeals to the Kurmi vote bank. So if they antagonise Nitish Kumar before the elections, then they will wash their hands off the Kurmi votes, and to an extent the Kushwaha votes.

Asit Nath Tiwari, Spokesperson, Congress

What is Tejashwi Yadav's political future?

He will continue to sit in the opposition like ha has been sitting in the opposition because the people of Bihar know that Lalu Yadav or Tejashwi Yadav, the name might be different, but both of them belong to the same family - one that has given jungle raj to Bihar. So with Tejashwi Yadav as the official face of the Mahagathbandhan, the women in Bihar in particular, over 1.2 crore of them, who got Rs. 10,000 in their account, know that if Tejashwi Yadav or the RJD come back to power, they will only get jungle raj 2.0.

Pradeep Bhandari, Spokesperson, BJP

Tejashwi Yadav is still the youth’s hope. And that is primarily because of employment.

Asit Nath Tiwari, Spokesperson, Congress

Will the opposition’s campaign against the Election Commission impact the elections?

Time and again, the people of the country, the voters of the country, have rejected this malicious campaigns against the Indian democratic institutions, which is also an attack on the constitution of India. Not just the voters of Bihar, but Tejashwi Yadav himself has rejected Rahul Gandhi’s entire campaign.

Pradeep Bhandari, Spokesperson, BJP

We are simply stating facts, we are not levelling allegations. We are showing facts to the people, and in front of the court. And it will have an effect. Bihar’s people have understood.

Asit Nath Tiwari, Spokesperson, Congress

Will Prashant Kishor have any effect?

Mr. Kishore has said that he will either be ‘arsh pe ya farsh pe’. He will definitely be farsh pe (on the floor). And he himself has ensured that by not agreeing to fight from Raghopur. Please note that if there was any wave of a third entity, you could have won from any seat. But does Prashant Kishor understand that his buzz is only on media and social media? On the ground that he is fighting, he is fighting for a single digit vote share or fighting with NOTA.

Pradeep Bhandari, Spokesperson, BJP

When Prashant Kishor was doing his yatra, then it seemed like he will play an important role in the elections. But when his yatra was done, and he structured the party - he put a photo of Gandhiji and started talking about alcohol, that he will abolish alcohol. After that, the way he distributed tickets, giving tickets to controversial people, sidelined those who walked the yatra with him, rich people came, took tickets and will contest the elections. So the message went all across Bihar, that Prashant Kishor is not Jan Suraj but ‘Dhan Suraj (money-minded)’.

Asit Nath Tiwari, Spokesperson, Congress