Bihar Assembly Polls: The Bharatiya Janata Party announced its first list of 71 candidates for Bihar assembly elections on Friday, fielding Deputy Chief Ministers Samrat Chaudhary and Vijay Kumar Sinha from Tarapur and Lakhisarai seats, respectively.
Key Candidate Announcements
Ramkripal Yadav, a former Union Minister and once a trusted aide of RJD founder Lalu Prasad Yadav, will contest from Danapur, marking his continued political journey with the BJP.
Senior BJP leader and former minister Tarkishore Prasad will fight from Katihar, Health Minister Mangal Pandey from Siwan, and Road Construction Minister Nitin Nabin from Bankipur.
Commonwealth Games gold medallist shooter Shreyasi Singh will contest the Jamui seat she won in the previous election, continuing her political career after her sporting success.
Notable Omission
Assembly Speaker Nand Kishor Yadav’s name is conspicuously absent from the list. The party has instead fielded Ratnesh Kushwaha from the Patna Sahib seat, which Yadav has represented since 2010, raising questions about the sitting Speaker’s political future.
Tarapur, where Deputy Chief Minister Samrat Chaudhary has been fielded, has been held by JDU since 2010. Previously, the seat was represented by Chaudhary’s father Shakuni Chaudhary, who was then with Lalu Yadav’s RJD, highlighting the constituency’s political evolution.
Strategic Implications
The candidate list reflects BJP’s strategy of fielding sitting ministers and high-profile personalities while making strategic changes in certain constituencies. The mix includes established political figures, former bureaucrats-turned-politicians, and sports personalities who have successfully transitioned to electoral politics.
The announcement comes as the NDA alliance finalizes seat-sharing arrangements ahead of the November 6 and 11 elections. The BJP and JDU are negotiating to contest approximately equal numbers of seats, with smaller allies including LJP, HAM, and RLM receiving proportionate allocations.
Election Context
With Bihar elections approaching, the candidate list signals BJP’s confidence in its current leadership while also introducing fresh faces. The party’s decision to replace some sitting representatives, particularly the Speaker, indicates internal assessments about winnability and strategic positioning for the polls.
Further candidate lists are expected as the party completes its selection process for remaining constituencies.
