The second and final phase of the Bihar Assembly elections commenced today, with 3.7 crore voters set to determine the outcomes for 1,302 candidates across 122 constituencies.
According to the Election Commission of India (ECI), the polling is taking place at 45,399 polling stations, with 5,326 situated in urban areas and 40,073 in rural regions. Over half of the state’s voters, approximately 2.28 crore, belong to the 30–60 age group, while only 769,000 are first-time voters aged 18–19. Among the 122 constituencies involved in this phase, there are 1.75 crore women voters.
This final phase encompasses Assembly constituencies in the Magadh, Mithilanchal, Seemanchal, Shahabad, and Tirhut regions. Of the 122 seats, 101 are classified as general, while 19 are reserved for Scheduled Castes (SC) and two for Scheduled Tribes (ST).
In the first phase, conducted on November 6 across 121 constituencies in 18 districts, Bihar achieved its highest-ever voter turnout at 64.66%.
Notable candidates in the second phase include Bijendra Prasad Yadav, a senior JD(U) leader and the longest-serving member of the State Cabinet, and BJP’s Prem Kumar, a cabinet minister contesting from Gaya Town, a seat he has won consecutively since 1990.
Other ministers facing electoral challenges include BJP’s Renu Devi (Bettiah) and Neeraj Kumar Singh ‘Bablu’ (Chhatapur), along with JD(U)’s Leshi Singh (Dhamdaha), Sheela Mandal (Phulparas), and Zama Khan (Chainpur).
In Katihar district, CPI(ML) Liberation’s Mehboob Alam (Balrampur) and Congress’s Shakeel Ahmed Khan (Kadwa) aim for a third consecutive win. AIMIM state president and sitting MLA Akhtarul Iman is again contesting from Amour, making this phase a significant litmus test for AIMIM, which previously secured five seats in the Seemanchal region.
The second and final phase is crucial for smaller NDA allies, such as the Hindustani Awam Morcha (HAM), led by Union Minister Jitan Ram Manjhi, and Upendra Kushwaha’s Rashtriya Lok Morcha (RLM), both of which are contesting six seats each. All six HAM seats are up for grabs in this phase.
The RLM, a relatively new party lacking current representation in the State Assembly, has nominated Kushwaha’s wife, Snehlata, from Sasaram and his close associate Madhaw Anand from Madhubani, both entering the electoral arena for the first time.
The post originally appeared on Maktoob Media.
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