"We suggested elections should be held in single phase": JD(U) Bihar president after meeting ECI delegation

After the meeting of the ECI delegation, Janata Dal (United) Bihar president Umesh Singh Kushwaha on Saturday said that their party has urged the Election Commission to conduct elections in a single phase and just right after Chhath Puja so that people living outside the state can also cast their vote.

Speaking to reporters, Kushwaha said, "Our party has suggested that the elections should be held in a single phase. To allow voters arriving from outside during Chhath Parv to cast their votes, the elections should be scheduled immediately after Chhath Parv..."

However, Lok Janshakti Party (Ram-Vilas) urged the poll panel to conduct elections in two phases and requested the availability of basic amenities at all polling booths, said the party's National General Secretary Shahnawaz Ahmed Kaifee.

Speaking to reporters, LJP(RV) National General Secretary Kaifee said, "We demanded that elections in Bihar should be conducted in two phases and there should be arrangements of security forces at every booth. Third, the Election Commission should ensure that senior citizens and differently abled individuals have their votes...Fourth, the Election Commission should provide toilets, water, and electricity at all polling booths...It (SIR) is not a topic of discussion now."

Under the chairmanship of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, discussions were successfully held with all the recognised political parties of Bihar, along with Election Commissioners Dr Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Dr Vivek Joshi, Chief Electoral Officer of Bihar Vinod Singh Gunjyal and senior officers of the Commission.


During the interaction, the Election Commission stated that political parties are the cornerstone of democracy and that all parties should ensure their participation at every stage of a transparent electoral process.

The EC urged voters to celebrate the festival of elections with harmony and respect, and to experience the transparency of the elections. It also urged political parties to ensure that they nominate polling agents at every polling booth.

Political parties thanked the EC for taking "historic, transparent, and firm" measures to purify the electoral rolls through the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) and reiterated their complete commitment and faith in the electoral process.

They also thanked the EC for setting a maximum number of voters per polling station at 1,200.

Moreover, representatives from various political parties demanded that elections be conducted immediately after the Chhath festival to ensure maximum voter participation and suggested holding the elections in as minimum phases as possible.

The parties also appreciated several recent initiatives by the Election Commission, including reforms related to the counting of postal ballots and the use of Form 17C.

All political parties reiterated their complete trust in the Election Commission and expressed confidence that the upcoming Bihar elections would be conducted in a free, fair, and fully transparent manner.


Meanwhile, Janata Dal (United) MP Sanjay Kumar Jha on Saturday said that the party has urged the Election Commission to conduct the upcoming Bihar assembly elections in a single phase, citing the state's improved law and order situation.

Speaking after a meeting between the Election Commission and recognised political parties in Patna, Jha said to reporters, "We put forward our point before the Election Commission. The Special Intensive Revision (SIR) has happened in Bihar, and Bihar will show the country the way SIR is done. We have urged that elections should be held in one phase in Bihar."

The Election Commission is expected to announce the dates for the Bihar Assembly polls today.