Patna:The nomination process for elections to 10 seats of the Bihar Legislative Council commenced on Monday, triggering heightened political activity in Patna as parties prepare their strategies for the contest.
Former chief minister Nitish Kumar met Janata Dal (United) working president Sanjay Jha and deputy chief minister Vijay Choudhary at their residences on Monday. The meetings come amid discussions within the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) over seat allocation and candidate selection for the Council elections.
The consultations followed a similar round of meetings on Sunday, when Nitish Kumar and Sanjay Jha met in Patna. Vijay Choudhary had also met Jha separately the same day.
Political observers view the engagements as part of ongoing deliberations within the alliance ahead of the nomination deadline.
Election Schedule
According to the Election Commission’s schedule, nominations will be accepted from June 1 to 8.
Scrutiny of nomination papers is scheduled for June 9, while candidates can withdraw their nominations until June 11.
If the number of valid candidates remains equal to the number of seats after the withdrawal deadline, the candidates will be declared elected unopposed.
In the event of a contest, polling will be held on June 18 from 9 am to 4 pm for the 10 Legislative Council seats elected by members of the Bihar Legislative Assembly. Counting of votes will take place after polling concludes, followed by the declaration of results.
Seat-Sharing Discussions Underway
With the nomination process now underway, discussions over seat-sharing among NDA constituents have intensified. Alliance partners are also understood to have begun pressing their claims for representation in the elections.
No official announcement regarding seat distribution or candidate lists had been made at the time of publication.
Rohini Acharya Dismisses Speculation
Amid speculation over potential candidates, Rohini Acharya, daughter of Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) president Lalu Prasad, denied reports suggesting that she may contest the Legislative Council election.
In a post on X, Acharya described the reports as rumours and alleged that certain individuals were attempting to spread misinformation about her political plans.
She also said similar claims had been circulated in the past regarding members of her family and had subsequently proved to be incorrect.
As parties finalise their nominees, attention is expected to remain focused on candidate announcements and alliance calculations in the run-up to the election.
