Patna: Voting is set to commence this Friday across four constituencies in Bihar, namely Aurangabad, Nawada, Gaya, and Jamui, marking the first phase of the electoral process. A total of 38 candidates are in contention for these crucial seats, with polling booths numbering 6,097 ready to receive voters from 7 am onwards.
Representing the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) will be contesting in Aurangabad and Nawada, while the Hindustani Awam Morcha (HAM) fields former Chief Minister Jitan Ram Manjhi for Gaya. In Jamui, Arun Bharti, brother-in-law of Chirag Paswan, is stepping into the electoral arena. Meanwhile, the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) is presenting candidates in all four seats from its India Block.
Bihar’s Chief Electoral Officer, HR Srinivas, assured that all necessary arrangements have been put in place to ensure a peaceful and smooth voting process.
The voting is scheduled to commence at 7 am across 24 assembly constituencies within the four Lok Sabha seats. In areas affected by Naxal insurgency, voting will continue until 4 pm, with 15 assembly seats falling under this category. To ensure security, 153 companies of security forces have been deployed in these regions. However, in the remaining nine assemblies, polling will extend until 6 pm.
Particularly in Sheikhpura assembly of Jamui, a reserved seat, voting will continue until 6 pm. For the remaining five polling stations in Tarapur, Sikandra, Jamui, Jhajha, and Chakai assembly constituencies, polling will cease at 4 pm.
HR Srinivas disclosed that a total of 9,484 ballot units and an equivalent number of control unit keys will be utilized in this phase. Additionally, 10,274 Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) machines will be deployed.
Detailing further, the Chief Electoral Officer mentioned that 6,097 polling stations have been established for the electorate to exercise their franchise, with a majority situated in rural areas totaling 5,490, while urban polling stations number 607.
