Bihar Election Date 2025 Highlights: Bihar gets battle ready – voting on Nov 6 and 11; Results on Nov 14

The ECI will announce the dates of election today at 4 pm.

The main contest for Bihar elections is between two familiar rivals – the Mahagathbandhan or the Grand Alliance led by the Rashtriya Janata Dal with the Congress as a major constituent, and the ruling NDA, which brings together the BJP and Chief Minister Nitish Kumar’s JD(U) among others.

However, smaller parties, like Prashant Kishore’s newly formed Jan Suraj Party, are also in the fray, which claims it is focused on systemic change, not just a new government.

Patna: Bihar Minister Santosh Suman says, “Don’t Dalit people deserve it? As of now, Nitish Kumar is the CM face, but in the coming times, a Dalit should also become the CM of Bihar.”

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar today inaugurated the first phase of the 3.6-km elevated stretch of the priority corridor of the Patna Metro rail project.

On Election Commission to announce Bihar election schedule today, BJP leader Shahnawaz Hussain says, “Wait is finally over. CM Nitish Kumar is giving a lot of gifts to Bihar today. Patna Metro is being inaugurated. So many schemes have been launched. A world-class cricket stadium has been built in Rajgir. We have shown development… Bihar has transformed from ‘jungle raj’ to ‘metro raj’…”

Congress MP Akhilesh Prasad Singh on Monday said that the grand-old party welcomes EC’s step to announce polls today.

He added, “….and (we) hope that the upcoming elections in Bihar are free and fair, allowing the underprivileged and marginalized to exercise their right to vote—this is their responsibility…”

Bihar CM Nitish Kumar virtually inaugurates and lays the foundation stone of several development schemes of the Energy Department.

On Bihar election , BJP National Spokesperson Ajay Alok says, “Certainly, there is, was, and will always be a spring in Bihar. The season of ‘Patajhad’ was left behind before 2005. Bihar will not return to that phase again, it will remain in spring”.

On the Bihar Assembly elections date to be announced today by EC, Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Priyanka Chaturvedi said the polls are going to be historic.

“Nitish Kumar and the BJP made several commitments, but each was found to be unfulfilled. The public will now be able to remove them from power,” she added.

On ECI to announce Bihar Election poll dates today, Congress leader Akhilesh Prasad Singh said that the party and Mahagathbandhan are “fully prepared”. He added that the party’s only expectation is for EC to hold “free and fair elections”. “Whether the elections are held in two phases or in one phase, we are prepared,” Singh said on Monday.

CEC Gyanesh Kumar on Saturday informed in the press conference that for jailed individuals filing nominations, EC makes a decision based on “laws framed by Parliament, what is permissible, and the rights EC holds under the Constitution.”

The spokesperson of Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) has said that the party wants 12 seats in the Bihar Assembly Elections 2025, adding that 2 senior leaders from the party will be meeting BJP LoP and RJD’s Tejashwi Yadav to finalise the seat allocation.

Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar on Sunday expressed satisfaction over the completion of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) in Bihar, saying it has “purified” the state’s voter list for the first time in 22 years. He highlighted that each of the 243 Assembly constituencies had an Electoral Registration Officer (ERO) overseeing the process, supported by 90,207 Booth Level Officers (BLOs) to ensure the exercise was completed successfully.

Ahead of the poll date announcement, Bihar CM Nitish Kumar will be launching the first phase of Patna metro today at 11:00 PM. The Election Commission will announce the election dates today at 4 pm, post which we might hear more on seat-sharing talks from the political parties.

The seat-sharing results will also be out soon once the schedule of Bihar Elections 2025 is out today. National President of the Vikassheel Insaan Party (VIP) Mukesh Sahni has said that they have already completed the seat sharing discussions. “We will make the announcements within 2-3 days. I will be the Dy CM,” he said.

According to The Indian Express, this time Bihar might see a reduced number of poll phases. This could happen because the EC has considered the feedback of political parties on their state visit. The feedback urged for the EC to reduce the number of poll phases this year in Bihar Elections.

The Election Commission of India will be announcing the Bihar poll dates today at 4 pm. The EC will be holding a press conference and announcing the dates there. We are yet to see if Bihar elections will be held in multiple phases or in a single phase.

Bihar CM Nitish Kumar will be inaugurating the first phase of Patna metro today at 11:00 am. This is one of the many infrastructure initiatives that the NDA has launched in the poll-bound state, ahead of the elections.

The Election Commission committee will be flying to Delhi today. They are expected to hold another press conference this week where they will likely announce the poll dates for upcoming Bihar Elections 2025.

On RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav’s statement, Union Minister Jitan Ram Manjhi says, “We feel pity for the thinking of Tejashwi Yadav. What kind of thinking does he have that he considers even a healthy person to be unconscious? This means that Tejashwi Yadav himself has become unconscious and has lost his consciousness.”

Bihar BJP launches ‘Sujhaav Yatra’ to take suggestions for its upcoming poll manifesto. Speaking on the occasion, Bihar BJP president Dilip Jaiswal says, “Ahead of the Bihar Assembly elections, various programmes are being organised. The manifesto committee has been entrusted with the task of understanding what the people of Bihar expect from the NDA government after all the work it has done.”

“For this, we are sending ‘suggestion boxes’ to all 243 Assembly constituencies. Till October 20, we will collect people’s inputs at major public places to know their expectations from the NDA government,” he added

BJP State President Dilip Jaiswal says, “We have stated that all parties have requested the Election Commission to conduct the elections as soon as possible. The Bharatiya Janata Party also emphasized that if there is a 28- or 30-day requirement, elections should still be held promptly. Almost all parties—whether the Rashtriya Janata Dal, Congress, or the Communist Party—agreed that elections should be conducted in either a single phase or at most two phases. Holding elections quickly will reduce candidates’ expenses and ensure that other developmental work in Bihar is not delayed”

TMC MP Shatrughan Sinha said that in some matters, regarding the names that were removed during the election period, there certainly seems to be some justification.

“Our election experts are examining this. I am awaiting the Supreme Court’s decision on the 7th, to see what they say…” he added.

Reacting on Election Commission team’s visit to Bihar, Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Arvind Sawant says, “The way Rahul Gandhi has exposed the Election Commission is clear. The Election Commission works like a slave, acting as his spokesperson and giving political speeches. Such people are betrayers of democracy. They removed the names of 6.5 million people from the voter list. Who these people are, whether they are right or wrong, must be investigated. People are now so aware that they will keep an eye on everything. Don’t forget the Chandigarh elections…”

All RJD MLAs, MLCs, and MPs are arriving at RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav’s residence for a meeting focused on the upcoming assembly elections.

RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav slams Nitish Kumar again, says, “He (Nitish Kumar) has been hijacked by the BJP and is only a puppet now. The Bihar Government is being run from Delhi by Modi and Amit Shah.”

Vikassheel Insaan Party (VIP) founder Mukesh Sahani says, “The situation now is that Nitish Kumar doesn’t want to give a speech. If he were to give a speech, elections would be conducted in five phases. In 2015, Nitish Kumar held elections in five phases because of the circumstances at that time. Now, I am not in a position to go anywhere and give a speech, so he is asking to conduct the election in a single phase…”

Bihar BJP poll in-charge Dharmendra Pradhan, Hindustani Awam Morcha (Secular) founder Jitan Ram Manjhi, and Bihar Deputy CM Samrat Chaudhary meet RLSP chief Upendra Kushwaha.

Meetings continue amid rain as BJP and NDA leaders try to finalise seat sharing.

On expenditure limit on political parties, Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar says, “Regarding the expenditure limit, the Election Commission has already issued instructions. An Expenditure Observer has also been appointed in every district, who will be from the Revenue Services and will maintain records of all expenditure. When it comes to criminal records, no distinction is made; regardless of the candidate, as per the Commission’s instructions, it is mandatory to disclose in the affidavit or inform the public if there is any criminal record…”

On number of phases in Bihar polls, Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar says, “Regarding one, two or three-phase elections, we have heard the views of political parties, each has its pros and cons and the Election Commission will take a decision on this matter soon. As far as voter identification is concerned, the Election Commission has already issued orders. The method of verifying a voter’s identity must follow those orders…”

Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar spoke on SC verdict on Aadhaar, “…According to the Supreme Court’s orders and under the Aadhaar Act, Aadhaar cannot be considered proof of date of birth, proof of residence, or proof of citizenship.”

“The Election Commission requested Aadhaar card within the enumeration form itself. Providing your Aadhaar number is not mandatory under the Aadhaar Act, nor under Section 26 of the Representation of the People Act, 1950. It is optional. It depends on the Aadhaar holder,” he said.

The CEC note that even under the Aadhaar Act, the Aadhaar card is neither proof of residence nor proof of citizenship.

“If anyone got Aadhaar card after 2023 or downloaded it after 2023, the Aadhaar card itself, under several orders of the Supreme Court, states that the Aadhaar card is not proof of date of birth…The Supreme Court did say, and we are following that order, that Aadhaar cards should be accepted. We were also accepting Aadhaar cards in the enumeration form and still are… However, the Supreme Court also stated in its order that the Aadhaar card will not be proof of citizenship….the Supreme Court has also stated that it is not proof of citizenship. Other documents may be required for eligibility,” he said.