The tenure of 11 elected members in the Bihar Legislative Assembly is set to conclude in the first week of May. Elections for the vacant seats in the Legislative Council will soon be announced. Among the members whose terms are ending are Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, former Chief Minister Rabri Devi, BJP leader Syed Shahnawaz Hussain, JDU leader and former minister Sanjay Kumar Jha, Congress leader Premchandra Mishra, HAM leader Santosh Kumar Suman, BJP leader Mangal Pandey, RJD leader Ramchandra Purve, JDU leader Khalid Anwar, Rameshwar Mahto, and BJP leader Sanjay Paswan.
The victory of five candidates from the NDA is considered crucial in the evolving political scenario of Bihar. Extra votes will be needed to secure the win for the sixth member. According to sources, winning a seat requires the support of 22 legislators. The NDA has the votes of 78 BJP members, 45 JDU members, and 4 HAM members, along with one independent. Three seats are expected to be easily won by BJP, and two by JDU. One of these seats will witness the election of the Chief Minister.
It is essential for the NDA to secure additional votes despite having BJP’s 78, JDU’s 45, and HAM’s 4 votes. In this context, the victory of Jitan Ram Manjhi’s son as a member becomes crucial for the coalition government.
In the new government, Santosh Kumar Suman from the HAM party has been appointed as a minister. Santosh Kumar is the son of former CM Jitan Ram Manjhi. Although he is currently a member of the Legislative Council, his term is also ending in May. Therefore, to remain in the cabinet, he needs to be elected as a member of either the Legislative Council or the Legislative Assembly. Besides the support of the party’s four legislators, additional votes from BJP and JDU will be required for the Legislative Council.
In the India Alliance, the RJD is expected to secure three seats based on its 79 members in the Assembly. For the remaining two seats, Congress with its 19 members and the remaining votes from the RJD will play a crucial role. The support of 16 Left legislators will be necessary for a victory. One Congress seat is also vacant, and RJD needs the votes of three Congress members to maintain its seats.
The Legislative Council has a total of 75 seats. Elections for 27 representatives are conducted by the members of the Legislative Assembly, while one-third of the Council seats become vacant every two years, leading to elections. In this sequence, the tenure of 11 elected members is coming to an end in May, with elections conducted by the Legislative Assembly members. Booth formation for Legislative Council members is carried out within the Assembly itself.
