BJP fields both Dy CMs in first Bihar list of 71, drops Speaker Nand Kishore Yadav

The BJP on Tuesday released the first list of 71 candidates for the November Bihar elections, fielding both its Deputy Chief Ministers and dropping Assembly Speaker Nand Kishore Yadav (72), a seven-term lawmaker from Patna Sahib.

Apart from Deputy CMs Samrat Choudhary and Vijay Kumar Sinha, seven ministers in the outgoing Bihar Government find their names on the list. Nand Kishore has been replaced by Ratnesh Kushwaha, a BJP organisational man.

Choudhary will contest after over a decade and has been fielded from Tarapur, which is adjoining Parbatta, the seat he won the last time he contested in 2010 on the RJD ticket. A former BJP Bihar chief, Choudhary later joined the JD(U) before switching camps to the saffron party. Sinha has represented Lakhisarai thrice and will defend the seat again.

The BJP has nominated two Members of the Legislative Council-- Choudhary and Mangal Pandey (Health and Law Minister)--to contest the poll. Pandey, former Bihar BJP chief, will contest from Siwan where the party had lost last time.

Manjhi names all 6 candidates

Former Bihar CM and Hindustani Awam Morcha chief Jitan Ram Manjhi on Tuesday named all six candidates against seats allotted to his party.

JD(U) MP threats to resign

JD(U)'s Bhagalpur MP Ajay Kumar Mandal sought to resign on Tuesday lamenting lack of discussions over ticket distribution. His party was yet to respond to his dare.

Of the 71 candidates, 61 are sitting MLAs and nine women (12 per cent). In 10 seats, including the six the party lost last time (Siwan, Danapur, Bikram, Arwal, Aurangabad and Guruwa), the BJP has fielded new faces. Ace shooter Shreyasi Singh, who was first elected from Jamui in 2020, will defend her seat.

The BJP has dropped one of the two sitting MLAs--ex-minister Amrendra Pratap Singh (Ara seat) and Raghavendra Pratap Singh (Barhara)--against whom former Union Minister RK Singh had raised a banner of revolt, threatening to campaign against the party if they were repeated. Amrendra has been replaced with Sanjay Singh Tiger. RK Singh, a former two-term MP, had accused both these leaders of “sabotaging” his prospects in Arrah in the 2024 Lok Sabha poll.

While Amrendra was yet to react, Nand Kishore said, “I stand by the decision... have no complaints… will welcome the new generation of leadership.”

Another notable face on the first list is former Patliputra MP and one-time RJD chief Lalu Yadav's aide Ram Kripal Yadav, who will contest from Danapur, a seat the BJP lost in 2020. Ram Kripal had defeated Lalu's daughter Misa Bharti in the 2014 and 2019 Lok Sabha elections, but lost to her in 2024. He quit the RJD to join the BJP when Lalu decided to field Misa instead of him from Patliputra in 2014.

Art and Culture Minister Motilal Prasad has also been dropped, with his Riga seat going to Baidyanath Prasad. The ministers who have been renominated are: Renu Devi (Bettiah), Nitin Nabin (Bankipur), Nitish Mishra (Jhanjharpur), Jibesh Mishra (Jale), Sanjay Saraogi (Darbhanga), Neeraj Kumar Singh Bablu (Chhatapur) and Kedar Prasad Gupta (Kurhani). In Kishanganj, the party has re-nominated lawyer Sweety Singh, even though she has lost the seat thrice. As part of the NDA seat-sharing deal, the BJP and the JD(U) are to contest 101 seats each.