The stage is set for the fifth and final round of voting for 57 seats in the Bihar assembly polls on Thursday. This phase will decide the fate of senior minister Bijendra Prasad Yadav of Janata Dal-United, Rashtriya Janata Dal legislature party leader Abdul Bari Siddiqui and RJD chief Lalu Prasad’s ‘Man Friday’ Bhola Yadav among others.
The 57 constituencies include 24 in the Seemanchal region bordering West Bengal and spread over nine districts of Madhubani, Darbhanga, Supual, Madhepura, Saharsa, Araria, Kisanganj, Purnea and Katihar.
A total of 1,55,43,594 electors are eligible to vote to decide the fate of 827 candidates, including 58 women. Except for two seats in Simri Bhaktiyarpur, polling will take place on the remaining 55 constituencies at scheduled 7 am to 5 pm, Additional Chief Electoral Officer R Lakshmanan said.
In the two Naxal-hit constituencies -- Simri, Bhakhtiyarpur and Mahisi in Saharsa district -- the poll time has been cut short by two hours and would end at 3 pm. Like in the previous four phases, there is a bitter fight between the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance and the ‘Grand Secular Alliance’ of JD-U, RJD and Congress in all 57 seats in the fifth round.
This round would also be watched keenly to see if Hyderabad MP Asaduddin Owaisi’s All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen manages to successfully launch itself in Bihar. AIMIM has fielded six candidates in Seemanchal areas where Muslim voters are present in a large number to test poll waters in Bihar.
Besides AIMIM, the impact of the third front, particularly Jan Adhikar Party of Madhepura MP Pappu Yadav, would also be keenly watched in the Kosi belt. The Nationalist Congress Party and the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha have also fielded candidates in many constituencies in this phase.
In 2010, the BJP had bagged 23 out of the 57 seats where the election will take place on Thursday. The JD-U, which was with the BJP in the last polls, had bagged 20 seats, Lalu Prasad’s RJD had bagged 8, Congress bagged 3, Lok Janshakti Party bagged 2 and 1 seat went to Independent.
The BJP has fielded a maximum of 38 candidates, while LJP nominees are contesting on 11. The Rashtriya Lok Samata Party of Union Minister Upendra Kushwaha has put up candidates in five constituencies and former chief minister Jitan Ram Manjhi’s Hindustani Awam Morcha in 3. JD-U candidates are trying their luck on 25 seats, RJD on 20 and Congress on 12.
Image: Police personnel carry EVMs ahead of the fifth phase of polling in Bihar. Photograph: PTI
