Patna: Amid an ongoing deadlock over seat-sharing within the ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA) in Bihar, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Tuesday released its first list of 71 candidates for the Bihar Assembly elections.

The list features prominent names, including both Deputy Chief Ministers: Samrat Choudhary and Vijay Kumar Sinha, showing the party’s intent to go into the high-stakes battle with a strong leadership pitch.

Top leaders in the fray

Deputy CM Samrat Choudhary has been fielded from Tarapur, while his counterpart Vijay Sinha will contest from Lakhisarai. Both leaders are expected to play a central role in spearheading BJP’s campaign in the state.

Who didn’t make the cut?

However, the list also marks the exclusion of several senior leaders, sparking speculation about internal reshuffling and electoral strategy.

Nand Kishore Yadav, the current Speaker of the Bihar Assembly and a veteran BJP leader, has been denied a ticket.

Ram Kripal Yadav, who had earlier contested from Danapur and recently lost the Lok Sabha election from Patliputra, has also been dropped.

Former MLA Arun Sinha, whose name was being considered for the Kumhrar seat in Patna, had already announced that he would not be contesting this time. His name has been officially left out of the candidate list.

Bihar Elections: 

The elections to the 243-member Bihar Assembly will be conducted in two phases:

Phase 1: November 6

Phase 2: November 11

Counting of Votes: November 14

The BJP is contesting the polls as part of the NDA, which includes allies like the Janata Dal (United) and smaller regional parties. However, the seat-sharing formula among allies is still being finalised, creating some friction within the coalition.