We could see the wave all around, we did expect it: BJP’s Sushil Kumar Modi

Sushil Kumar Modi talks to The Indian Express on the NDA’s win in Bihar, the importance of Nitish Kumar to the alliance and the problems with the opposition’s campaign

Sushil Kumar Modi

Did you expect such a victory, especially against a seemingly good social alliance?

Even though several experts said Modi’s popularity was a uniform factor, they added a rider of the Opposition’s good social combination. But we could see the wave all around. We did expect it.

So what worked in your favour?

We had got 38 per cent of the votes in 2014 when Nitish Kumar was not part of the NDA. He alone had got about 16 per cent of the votes. If we combine our votes with his, we would be getting over 54-55 per cent of the votes.

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Do you think the RJD-led Grand Alliance ran a negative campaign?

They had no issue except taking up reservation and their perceived threat to the Constitution.

Were you able to stitch up a better social combination?

Victories of BJP state president Nityanand Rai and Ashok Yadav suggest we also got the Yadav votes. There was perfect synergy in NDA.

Santosh Singh

Santosh Singh is a Senior Assistant Editor with The Indian Express since June 2008. He covers Bihar with main focus on politics, society and governance. Investigative and explanatory stories are also his forte. Singh has 25 years of experience in print journalism covering Bihar, Delhi, Madhya Pradesh and Karnataka. ... Read More