With the Bihar Assembly elections drawing closer, Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar began his two-day visit to the state on Saturday to review poll preparedness. He is accompanied by Election Commissioners Dr. Sukhbir Singh and Dr. Vivek Joshi.
The CEC reached Patna on Friday night and is holding a series of high-level meetings. On Saturday, he will first meet representatives of all recognised national and state political parties at Hotel Taj, Patna.
Leaders from the BJP, JD(U), RJD, Congress, LJP-RV, RLM, CPI(ML), CPM, CPI, VIP and others are expected to meet the poll panel, with a maximum of three representatives from each party. The Commission will seek feedback on issues such as voter list discrepancies, Model Code of Conduct enforcement, polling station facilities, and EVM security.
Later in the day, Kumar will interact with Divisional Commissioners, district election officials, and senior police officers through video conferencing. Special focus will be on Naxal-affected districts like Gaya, Aurangabad, Nawada, Munger, Rohtas, and Kaimur, where security arrangements remain a challenge.
The Election Commission is emphasising better facilities for women and disabled voters and has instructed police officers to submit detailed security plans. On Sunday, the CEC and his team will meet nodal officers of enforcement agencies, including the Income Tax Department, Enforcement Directorate, NCB, Excise, and Customs, to curb the use of money, liquor, drugs, and other inducements in polls.
The team will also meet the Chief Electoral Officer of Bihar, CAPF representatives, the Chief Secretary, and the DGP to review logistics, law and order, polling personnel deployment, and counting centre security.
A press conference is scheduled for Sunday evening, where the Commission may announce the election dates or indicate a timeline. Political observers expect polls to be held in multiple phases between October and November 2025, similar to the last Assembly elections.
Meanwhile, with the final voter list published on September 30 after a two-month intensive revision, Bihar now awaits the announcement of polling dates. Political activity is heating up as the ruling NDA showcases its welfare schemes, while the Opposition sharpens its attack on issues like unemployment, inflation, law and order, and corruption.
Analysts predict that once dates are declared, Bihar’s political temperature will rise sharply, setting the stage for a high-stakes electoral battle across the state’s 243 Assembly seats.