2020 Bihar Assembly Elections Date: Bihar is due to elect a new 243-member assembly by November 29.
New Delhi:
Bihar will vote on October 28, November 3 and 7 for a new assembly and the results will be announced on November 10, the electoral commission announced today. The world‘s largest election in the coronavirus crisis will be held with many changes, including an extra hour of voting and no physical contact during the campaign.
Announcing the three-phase election, Chief Electoral Officer Sunil Arora called it a “leap of faith”, noting that the JEE and NEET medical and engineering examinations have taken place recently and that a great number of students sat down for them. “COVID shows no signs of falling. A way had to be found to choose representatives and protect people’s health. Life must go on,” he told reporters.
“The world has changed dramatically since the last elections, which were held for the Delhi assembly. The COVID-19 pandemic has forced a new normal in all aspects of our lives,” Arora said.
Bihar is due to elect a new assembly of 243 members by November 29.
Voting will take place from 7:00 a.m. to 6:00 a.m. instead of 5:00 a.m. Covid patients, suspects and people in quarantine will vote separately and there will be no physical contact during meetings and rallies, the chief electoral commissioner said. Voters must use masks and gloves. The number of phases has also been reduced by five to minimize infection. “Covid-19 patients can vote in the last hour of the day,” Mr. Arora said.
It is the world‘s largest election to be held amid the coronavirus crisis.
The powerful electoral body also warned against the misuse of social media. “Anyone who uses social media for malicious purposes, such as to explode community tensions during elections, will face the consequences; hate speech will also be dealt with harshly,” Arora said.
Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, who heads an in-state coalition with the BJP, hopes to win a fourth term with the RJD opposition of jailed former chief minister Lalu Yadav and Congress – his partners in the last election – defying him.
The National Democratic Alliance (NDA) includes Janata Dal United of Nitish Kumar, the BJP, the Lok Janshakti party of Chirag Paswan and Hindustani Awam Morcha of former Chief Minister Jitan Ram Manjhi, who recently left the alliance from the ‘opposition.
The opposition, led by Lalu Yadav’s son Tejashwi Yadav, plans to target the ruling coalition for its handling of the coronavirus crisis and the migrant crisis, in addition to flooding in the state. The centre’s controversial farm bills, passed in parliament despite opposition protests, have also armed Tejashwi Yadav with a campaign pitch to target what he calls an “anti-farm” government. This morning, he drove a tractor on a demonstration to return home.
Another topic that has been drawn into Bihar politics is the death of Sushant Singh Rajput, a promising young Bollywood star from Bihar. The Nitish Kumar government – including the BJP – claims credit for pushing the investigation to the CBI, which they say will secure justice for a “beloved son of Bihar”.
Last year, in national elections, the Nitish Kumar-BJP-Paswan combo won 39 of Bihar’s 40 parliamentary seats, demolishing the opposition led by Tejashwi Yadav and scoring a boost ahead of the state poll.
