Patna: Political activity intensified at the Bihar Legislative Assembly on Monday as candidates filed nominations on the final day for the upcoming Bihar Legislative Council elections.
The ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA) fielded nine candidates, while the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), nominated Dr. Sunil Kumar Singh. The nomination process drew senior leaders from across the NDA, reflecting the significance of the contest.
Among those present during the filing of nominations were Deputy Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary, Union Ministers Rajiv Ranjan Singh and Chirag Paswan, JD(U) Working President Sanjay Jha, and Deputy Chief Minister Vijay Kumar Chaudhary.
JD(U) and BJP Candidates File Nominations
The Janata Dal (United) nominated Nishant Kumar, Bharti Mehta, Shivrani Devi Prajapati and Lalan Prasad, who is contesting the by-election seat. Chief Minister Nitish Kumar was not present during the nomination process.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) fielded Sanjay Mayukh, Anil Kumar Thakur, Sheela Pandit and Pawan Singh, the Bhojpuri actor-turned-politician. The Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) nominated Ashraf Ansari.
Electoral Arithmetic Favouring Nine Candidates
The Bihar Legislative Assembly currently has 242 sitting MLAs in the 243-member House. All sitting members are eligible to vote in the Legislative Council election.
Based on the strength of parties in the Assembly, the NDA is widely expected to secure eight seats, while the Mahagathbandhan has sufficient numbers to ensure the election of one candidate. This makes the outcome of nine of the ten seats largely predictable.
Under the proportional representation system, a candidate requires roughly 24.2 first-preference votes to secure election.
Tenth Seat Emerges as Key Battleground
The contest for the tenth seat remains open and is expected to be the most closely watched aspect of the election.
For the NDA to secure an additional seat, it would need support beyond its existing legislative strength. This could come through cross-voting by opposition legislators or the absence of some Mahagathbandhan MLAs during voting.
Political observers note that the current numbers do not place the NDA in a comfortable position for the tenth seat. Any breakthrough would likely depend on changes in political alignments or voting behaviour closer to polling day.
Rajya Sabha Election Adds to Speculation
Interest in the tenth seat has been fuelled by the NDA’s performance in the recent Rajya Sabha elections.
During that election, four Mahagathbandhan MLAs—three from the Congress and one from the RJD—did not participate in voting. Their absence benefited the NDA, helping its fifth candidate secure victory.
However, the Legislative Council election presents a different challenge. The vote requirement for an additional seat is comparatively higher, making the absence of a few opposition MLAs insufficient on its own to alter the outcome.
Voting Will Test Alliance Cohesion
With nominations now complete, attention is shifting to voting and counting day.
Current political arithmetic suggests that the NDA is strongly placed to win eight seats, while the Mahagathbandhan is expected to secure one. The decisive contest will be for the remaining seat, where party discipline, alliance management and potential cross-voting may prove more significant than numerical strength alone.
The outcome of the tenth seat is likely to provide an early indication of the cohesion and political strategy of both alliances ahead of future electoral contests in Bihar.
