Voting Underway in Second Phase of Bihar Assembly Elections Across 122 Seats

The second phase of the Bihar Assembly elections began on Tuesday morning across 122 constituencies spread over 20 districts, with polling underway since 7 am. Around 3.7 crore voters are eligible to cast their votes in this phase, which will decide the fate of 12 ministers from Chief Minister Nitish Kumar’s cabinet.

Voting is also being held for bye-elections in eight assembly constituencies across six states and one Union Territory, including Budgam and Nagrota in Jammu and Kashmir, Anta in Rajasthan, Ghatsila in Jharkhand, Jubilee Hills in Telangana, Tarn Taran in Punjab, Dampa in Mizoram, and Nuapada in Odisha.

In Nagrota, Assistant Returning Officer Sumit Kohli said that 150 polling booths have been set up and appealed to voters to come out in large numbers. Voting will continue till 6 pm. “We have 97,379 voters here and good security arrangements. People should not be concerned about safety,” he said.
Across Bihar, 45,399 polling stations have been established, 40,073 in rural areas and 5,326 in urban regions. Among them are 595 all-women-managed polling stations, 316 model booths, and 91 managed by persons with disabilities.

A total of 3,70,13,556 electors are eligible to vote in this phase, including 1.95 crore men, 1.74 crore women, and 943 third-gender voters. Mock polling was conducted earlier in the morning to test preparedness across districts.

The second phase is crucial for the ruling NDA, as 12 ministers are in the fray. From JD(U), the key candidates include Vijendra Yadav (Supaul), Lesi Singh (Dhamdaha), Jayant Kushwaha (Amarpur), Sumit Singh (Chakai), Mohammad Jama Khan (Chainpur), and Sheela Mandal (Phoolparas). BJP ministers contesting include Prem Kumar (Gaya), Renu Devi (Bettiah), Vijay Kumar Mandal (Sikati), Nitish Mishra (Jhanjharpur), Neeraj Bablu (Chhatapur), and Krishnanandan Paswan (Harsiddhi).

Several constituencies are witnessing high-profile contests. In Sasaram, RLM chief Upendra Kushwaha’s wife Snehlata Kushwaha is the NDA candidate, facing RJD’s Satendra Sah and Jan Suraaj’s Binay Kumar Singh. Former Chief Minister Jitan Ram Manjhi’s HAM(S) is contesting from Imamganj, while the RJD has fielded Ritu Priya Chaudhary.

n Mohania, sitting MLA Sangita Kumari, who switched from the RJD to BJP, faces independent candidate Ravi Shankar Paswan, backed by the Mahagathbandhan. Bihpur is witnessing a contest between BJP’s Kumar Shailendra, VIP’s Arpana Kumari, and Jan Suraaj’s Pawan Choudhary.
Other key battles include Shailesh Kumar (JD-U) vs Prem Sagar (VIP) in Gopalpur, and Murari Pasavan (BJP) vs Ram Vilash Paswan (RJD) in Pirpainti. Bhagalpur is witnessing a close contest between Congress MLA Ajeet Sharma, BJP’s Rohit Pandey, and Jan Suraaj’s Abhay Kant Jha.

Out of the 122 seats going to polls, the BJP had won 42 in the 2020 elections, while the RJD bagged 33, JD(U) 20, Congress 11, and Left parties five.

The NDA, comprising BJP, JD(U), HAM(S), and LJP (RV) — is aiming for a second term, while the Mahagathbandhan of RJD, Congress, Left parties, and VIP is looking to return to power. Prashant Kishor’s Jan Suraaj Party, contesting independently, is also hoping to make inroads.

The first phase of the Bihar elections saw a record voter turnout of 65.08 per cent, the highest in the state’s history.

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