Bihar Assembly Election Dates 2025 to Be Announced Today At 4 PM: EC Likely to Reduce Poll Phases

The Election Commission is set to announce the Bihar Assembly election dates at 4 PM today. The term of the Bihar Assembly is ending on 22 November. So the elections for the 243-member assembly have to be held before that date.

Reports suggest the elections might take place in fewer phases this time, following feedback from political parties during the Commission's recent visit to Bihar.

The ruling NDA has requested a single-phase election, while the Opposition prefers two phases, both urging for polls soon after the Chhath festival, which begins on October 25.

In the 2020 Bihar Assembly elections, voting was held in three phases, and the current Assembly's term concludes on November 22. The announcement comes shortly after Election Commissioners returned to Delhi following their October 4-5 review of poll preparations in Bihar.

More Polling Booths, Fewer Voters per Booth

Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar announced a major change: each polling booth will now serve 1,200 voters instead of 1,500.

"Earlier, long queues used to form during the final hours of polling. This change is aimed at reducing congestion and waiting times," said Kumar.

The decision will lead to an increase in polling booths, requiring additional Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) for deployment and security.

Voter Roll Revisions Under Special Intensive Revision

This will be the first Bihar election since the EC's decision on June 24 to conduct a Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. Unlike the usual pre-election revisions, the new rolls were freshly prepared.

Following the SIR, Bihar's voter list saw:

68.5 lakh deletions

21.53 lakh additions

Total registered voters: nearly 7.42 crore

The Supreme Court is currently hearing challenges against the EC's move to carry out the SIR before the elections.

Political Battlelines Drawn

The upcoming Bihar elections will see Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's NDA government face off against the Opposition alliance of RJD and Congress.

In the 2020 elections, voting took place from October 28 to November 7, and results were declared on November 10.

Voter turnout: 56.93%

Women: 59.69%

Men: 54.45%

The RJD emerged as the largest party with 75 seats, while BJP and JD(U) together secured 117 seats. A new contender this time is Prashant Kishor's Jan Suraaj Party, expected to contest across multiple constituencies.