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All 324 seats of the Bihar Legislative Assembly 163 seats needed for a majority | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Turnout | 62.57% | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The voter turnout in 2000 assembly polls was 62.6%. [1] [2] [3]
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All 324 seats of the Bihar Legislative Assembly 163 seats needed for a majority | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Turnout | 62.57% | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The voter turnout in 2000 assembly polls was 62.6%. [1] [2] [3]
Between 1990 and 2000, Bihar's per capita income, according to a World Bank estimate, fell from ₹ 1,373 to ₹ 1,289. Power consumption in Bihar went down from 84 KWH to 60 KWH and it registered the lowest number of Internet users among Indian states. As per a Business Today -Gallup survey in December 1999, Bihar was the worst state for investment. [4]
In 1999 Lok Sabha elections Rashtriya Janata Dal received a setback at the hand of BJP+JD(U) combine. The new coalition emerged leading in 199 out of 324 assembly constituencies and it was widely believed that in the forthcoming election to Bihar state assembly elections, the Lalu-Rabri rule will come to an end. The RJD had fought the election in an alliance with the Congress but the coalition didn't work making state leadership of Congress believe that the maligned image of Lalu Prasad after his name was drawn in the Fodder Scam had eroded his support base. Consequently, Congress decided to fight the 2000 assembly elections alone. [5]
The RJD had to be satisfied with the communist parties as coalition partners but the seat-sharing conundrum in the camp of National Democratic Alliance made Kumar pull his Samta Party out of the Sharad Yadav and Ram Vilas Paswan faction of the Janata Dal. Differences also arose between the BJP and Kumar as the latter wanted to be projected as the Chief Minister of Bihar but the former was not in favour. Even Paswan also wanted to be a CM face. The Muslims and OBCs were too divided in their opinion. A section of Muslims, which included the poor communities like Pasmanda were of the view that Lalu only strengthened upper Muslims like Shaikh, Sayyid and Pathans and they were in search of new options. [5]
Yadav also alienated other dominant backward castes like Koeri and Kurmi since his projection as the saviour of Muslims. It is argued by Sanjay Kumar that the belief that, "the dominant OBCs like the twin caste of Koeri-Kurmi will ask for share in power if he (Yadav) seeks their support while the Muslims will remain satisfied with the protection during communal riots only" made Yadav neglect them. Moreover, the divisions in both the camps made the political atmosphere in the state a charged one in which many parties were fighting against each other with no visible frontiers. JD(U) and BJP were fighting against each other on some of the seats and so was the Samta Party. [5]
 | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Seats | ||||||||
| Bharatiya Janata Party | 67 | ||||||||
| Bahujan Samaj Party | 05 | ||||||||
| Communist Party of India | 05 | ||||||||
| Communist Party of India (Marxist) | 02 | ||||||||
| Indian National Congress | 23 | ||||||||
| Janata Dal (United) | 21 | ||||||||
| Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) Liberation | 06 | ||||||||
| Jharkhand Mukti Morcha | 12 | ||||||||
| Rashtriya Janata Dal | 124 | ||||||||
| Samata Party | 34 | ||||||||
| United Goans Democratic Party | 02 | ||||||||
| Kosal Party | 02 | ||||||||
| Marxist Co-ordination Committee | 01 | ||||||||
| Independent | 20 | ||||||||
| Total | 324 | ||||||||
| Constituency | Winner | Runner Up | Margin | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| # | Name | Candidate | Party | Votes | Candidate | Party | Votes | |||
| West Champaran district | ||||||||||
| 1 | Dhanaha | Rajesh Singh | BSP | 15034 | Arun Kumar Tiwari | Ind | 11287 | 3747 | ||
| 2 | Bagaha (SC) | Purnmasi Ram | RJD | 58668 | Kailash Baitha | Ind | 39191 | 19477 | ||
| 3 | Ramnagar | Chandra Mohan Rai | BJP | 44454 | Mohammad Salauddin | NCP | 25332 | 19122 | ||
| 4 | Shikarpur (SC) | Bhagirathi Devi | BJP | 35377 | Subodh Kumar | NCP | 22069 | 13308 | ||
| 5 | Sikta | Dilip Varma | BJP | 50592 | Motiur Rahman | CPIMLL | 24147 | 26445 | ||
| 6 | Lauriya | Vishwa Mohan Sharma | INC | 41016 | Ran Vijay Shahi | RJD | 25520 | 15496 | ||
| 7 | Chanpatia | Krishna Kumar Mishra | BJP | 22617 | Sharfuddin Sheikh | SJP | 21058 | 1559 | ||
| 8 | Bettiah | Renu Devi | BJP | 44897 | Shamim Akhtar | Ind | 34056 | 10841 | ||
| 9 | Nautan | Baidyanath Prasad Mahto | SAP | 39584 | Amar Yadav | Ind | 15864 | 23720 | ||
| East Champaran district | ||||||||||
| 10 | Raxaul | Ajay Kumar Singh | BJP | 41983 | Sagir Ahmad | INC | 29032 | 12951 | ||
| 11 | Sugauli | Vijay Prasad Gupta | KP | 39499 | Ramashray Singh | CPM | 38993 | 506 | ||
| 12 | Motihari | Rama Devi | RJD | 78657 | Pramod Kumar | BJP | 44090 | 34567 | ||
| 13 | Adapur | Virendra Prasad Kushwaha | Ind | 44227 | Shyam Bihari Prasad | RJD | 43960 | 267 | ||
| 14 | Dhaka | Manoj Kumar Singh | RJD | 59948 | Avaneesh Kumar Singh | BJP | 53851 | 6097 | ||
| 15 | Ghorasahan | Laxmi Narayan Yadav | JDU | 39668 | Lal Babu Prasad | RJD | 18637 | 21031 | ||
| 16 | Madhuban | Sitaram Singh | RJD | 64285 | Rajesh Kumar Roshan | SAP | 43476 | 20809 | ||
| 17 | Pipra (SC) | Surendra Kumar Chandra | RJD | 34469 | Krishnanandan Paswan | Ind | 23702 | 10767 | ||
| 18 | Kesaria | Obaidullah | SAP | 46743 | Yamuna Yadav | KP | 17424 | 29319 | ||
| 19 | Harsidhi | Maheshwar Singh | SAP | 60363 | Awadhesh Kushwaha | RJD | 47645 | 12718 | ||
| 20 | Govindganj | Rajan Tiwari | Ind | 31702 | Bhupendra Nath Dubey | SAP | 28439 | 3263 | ||
| Gopalganj district | ||||||||||
| 21 | Kateya | Kiran Devi | RJD | 50704 | Mandev Tiwari | BJP | 33548 | 17156 | ||
| 22 | Bhore (SC) | Acharya Vishwanath Baitha | BJP | 59230 | Alagu Ram | RJD | 26857 | 32373 | ||
| 23 | Mirganj | Prabhu Dayal Singh | SAP | 49084 | Abdul Samad | Ind | 24596 | 24488 | ||
| 24 | Gopalganj | Sadhu Yadav | RJD | 30248 | Subhash Singh | BPP | 19372 | 10876 | ||
| 25 | Barauli | Rampravesh Rai | BJP | 52085 | Md. Nematullah | RJD | 42360 | 9725 | ||
| 26 | Baikunthpur | Manjeet Kumar Singh | SAP | 60891 | Lal Babu Yadav | RJD | 40963 | 19928 | ||
| Siwan district | ||||||||||
| 27 | Basantpur | Satyadeo Prasad Singh | BJP | 67052 | Manik Chand Rai | RJD | 65992 | 1060 | ||
| 28 | Goriakothi | Indra Deo Prasad | RJD | 42324 | Ajit Kumar Singh | Ind | 22198 | 20126 | ||
| 29 | Siwan | Awadh Bihari Choudhary | RJD | 107933 | Wasi Ahmad | BJP | 18696 | 89237 | ||
| 30 | Mairwa (SC) | Satyadeo Ram | CPIMLL | 32996 | Gorakh Ram | INC | 26487 | 6509 | ||
| 31 | Darauli | Sheo Shanker Yadav | RJD | 46047 | Amar Nath Yadav | CPIMLL | 33990 | 12057 | ||
| 32 | Ziradei | Azazul Haque | RJD | 75920 | Shyam Bahadur Singh | SAP | 31000 | 44920 | ||
| 33 | Maharajganj | Umashanker Singh | SAP | 58671 | Damodar Singh | Ind | 22715 | 35956 | ||
| 34 | Raghunathpur | Vijay Shanker Dubey | INC | 34503 | Vikram Kunwar | RJD | 32064 | 2439 | ||
| Saran district | ||||||||||
| 35 | Manjhi | Ravindra Nath Mishra | Ind | 33725 | Gautam Singh | SAP | 27583 | 6142 | ||
| 36 | Baniapur | Manoranjan Singh | Ind | 37926 | Ram Bahadur Rai | RJD | 35837 | 2089 | ||
| 37 | Masrakh | Tarkeshwar Singh | RJD | 47301 | Kedar Nath Singh | SAP | 36842 | 10459 | ||
| 38 | Taraiya | Ram Das Rai | RJD | 40680 | Janak Singh | BJP | 40415 | 265 | ||
| 39 | Marhaura | Yaduvanshi Rai | RJD | 68463 | Surendra Sharma | SAP | 45573 | 22890 | ||
| 40 | Jalalpur | Janardan Singh Sigriwal | BJP | 27408 | Ramjan Ali | SJP | 25800 | 1608 | ||
| 41 | Chapra | Udit Rai | RJD | 76749 | Rambabu Ray | BJP | 54030 | 22719 | ||
| 42 | Garkha (SC) | Muneshwar Choudhary | RJD | 52530 | Amrit Chaudhary | SAP | 45114 | 7416 | ||
| 43 | Parsa | Chandrika Rai | RJD | 74581 | Ram Nath Bidhyarthi | INC | 29071 | 45510 | ||
| 44 | Sonpur | Vinay Kumar Singh | BJP | 72502 | Ramanuj Prasad Yadav | RJD | 70212 | 2290 | ||
| Vaishali district | ||||||||||
| 45 | Hajipur | Nityanand Rai | BJP | 95598 | Rajendra Rai | RJD | 42762 | 52836 | ||
| 46 | Raghopur | Lalu Prasad Yadav | RJD | 70134 | Vishnudev Rai | JDU | 41006 | 29128 | ||
| 47 | Mahnar | Rama Kishore Singh | JDU | 84893 | Munshilal Rai | RJD | 44344 | 40549 | ||
| 48 | Jandaha | Upendra Kushwaha | SAP | 46042 | Achyutanand Singh | Ind | 40681 | 5361 | ||
| 49 | Patepur (SC) | Prema Chaudhary | RJD | 60572 | Mahendra Baitha | JDU | 48457 | 12115 | ||
| 50 | Mahua (SC) | Dasai Chowdhary | RJD | 60478 | Munshi Lal Paswan | JDU | 51408 | 9070 | ||
| 51 | Lalganj | Vijay Shukla | Ind | 82406 | Rajkumar Sah | RJD | 29701 | 52705 | ||
| 52 | Vaishali | Veena Shahi | INC | 52708 | Brishin Patel | RJD | 40680 | 12028 | ||
| Muzaffarpur district | ||||||||||
| 53 | Paroo | Mithilesh Prasad Yadav | RJD | 55823 | Anunay Kumar Singh | INC | 30523 | 25300 | ||
| 54 | Sahebganj | Ram Vichar Ray | RJD | 76235 | Nagendra Prasad Singh | BPP | 35872 | 40363 | ||
| 55 | Baruraj | Shashi Kumar Rai | JDU | 48850 | Brij Kishore Singh | RJD | 33817 | 15033 | ||
| 56 | Kanti | Gulam Jilani Warsi | RJD | 35023 | Ajit Singh | AJBP | 23979 | 11044 | ||
| 57 | Kurhani | Basawan Prasad Bhagat | RJD | 48343 | Brijesh Kumar | BPP | 32795 | 15548 | ||
| 58 | Sakra (SC) | Sital Ram | RJD | 49391 | Bilat Paswan | JDU | 42120 | 7271 | ||
| 59 | Muzaffarpur | Bijendra Chaudhary | RJD | 86873 | Suresh Kumar Sharma | BJP | 60040 | 26833 | ||
| 60 | Bochahan (SC) | Ramai Ram | RJD | 77031 | Musafir Paswan | JDU | 22863 | 54168 | ||
| 61 | Gaighat | Virendra Kumar Singh | JDU | 47020 | Devendra Prasad Yadav | RJD | 42024 | 4996 | ||
| 62 | Aurai | Ganesh Prasad Yadav | JDU | 47268 | Arjun Roy | RJD | 34381 | 12887 | ||
| 63 | Minapur | Dinesh Prasad Kushwaha | Ind | 32586 | Hind Keshari Yadav | RJD | 29634 | 2952 | ||
| Constituency | Reserved for (SC/ST/None) | Member | Party | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Runisaidpur | None | Bhola Rai | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Belsand | None | Ram Swarth Rai | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Sheohar | None | Sataya Nr. Prasad | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Sitamarhi | None | Shahid Ali Khan | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Bathnaha | None | Suryadeo Rai | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Majorganj | SC | Gauri Shankar Nagdansh | Bharatiya Janata Party | |
| Sonbarsa | None | Ramchandra Purve | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Sursand | None | Jainandan Prasad Yadav | Janata Dal | |
| Pupri | None | Sita Ram Yadav | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Benipatti | None | Ramashish Yadav | Janata Dal | |
| Bisfi | None | Shakil Ahmad | Indian National Congress | |
| Harlakhi | None | Sitaram Yadav | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Khajauli | SC | Ram Lakhan Ram "raman" | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Babubarhi | None | Deo Narayan Yadav | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Madhubani | None | Ramdev Mahato | Bharatiya Janata Party | |
| Pandaul | None | Naiyar Azam | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Jhanjharpur | None | Jagdish Narayan Chaudhary | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Phulparas | None | Ram Kumar Yadav | Janata Dal | |
| Laukaha | None | Hari Pd. Sah | Samata Party | |
| Madhepur | None | Jagat Nr. Singh | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Manigachhi | None | Lalit Kr. Yadav | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Bahera | None | Abdul Bari Siddiqui | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Ghanshyampur | None | Mahavir Prasad | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Baheri | None | Ramanand Singh | Janata Dal | |
| Darbhanga Rural | SC | Pitambar Paswan | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Darbhanga | None | Sultan Ahmad | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Keoti | None | Ghulam Sarwar | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Jale | None | Vijay Kumar Mishra | Bharatiya Janata Party | |
| Hayaghat | None | Umadhar Pd.singh | Independent | |
| Kalyanpur | None | Ashwamedh Devi | Samata Party | |
| Warisnagar | SC | Ram Sewak Hazari | Janata Dal | |
| Samastipur | None | Ram Nath Thakur | Janata Dal | |
| Sarairanjan | None | Ramashraya Sahni | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Mohiuddin Nagar | None | Ram Chandra Rai | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Dalsinghsarai | None | Ram Padarath Mahto | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Bibhutpur | None | Ramdeo Verma | Communist Party of India | |
| Rosera | SC | Ashok Kumar | Samata Party | |
| Singhia | None | Dr. Ashok Kumar | Indian National Congress | |
| Hasanpur | None | Gajendra Himansu | Janata Dal | |
| Balia | None | Shrinarayan Yadav | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Matihani | None | Rajendra Rajan | Communist Party of India | |
| Begusarai | None | Bhola Pd. Singh | Bharatiya Janata Party | |
| Barauni | None | Rajendra Pd. Singh | Communist Party of India | |
| Bachwara | None | Uttam Kumar Yadav | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Cheria Bariarpur | None | Ashok Kumar | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Bakhri | SC | Ramanand Ram | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Raghopur | None | Uday Prasad Goet | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Kishunpur | None | Yaduwansh Kumar Yadav | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Supaul | None | Bijendra Pd. Yadav | Janata Dal | |
| Tribeniganj | None | Anup Lal Yadav | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Chhatapur | SC | Gita Devi | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Kumarkhand | SC | Bhupendra Rishideo | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Singheshwar | None | Vijay Kumar Singh | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Saharsa | None | Shankar Prasad Tekriwal | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Mahishi | None | Abdul Ghafoor | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Simri-bakhtiarpur | None | Mehboob Ali Kaisar | Indian National Congress | |
| Madhepura | None | Rajendra Prasad Yadav | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Sonbarsa | None | Ashok Kumar Singh | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Kishanganj | None | Prof. Ravindra Charan Yadav | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Alamnagar | None | Narendra Nr. Yadav | Janata Dal | |
| Rupauli | None | Bima Bharti | Independent | |
| Dhamdaha | None | Leshi Singh | Samata Party | |
| Banmankhi | SC | Deo Narayan Rajak | Bharatiya Janata Party | |
| Raniganj | SC | Yamuna Prasad Ram | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Narpatganj | None | Janardan Yadav | Bharatiya Janata Party | |
| Forbesganj | None | Zakir Hussain Khan | Bahujan Samaj Party | |
| Araria | None | Bijay Kumar Mandal | Independent | |
| Sikti | None | Anandi Prasad Yadav | Bharatiya Janata Party | |
| Jokihat | None | Sarfraz | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Bahadurganj | None | Zahidur Rahman | Indian National Congress | |
| Thakurganj | None | Mohammad Jawed | Indian National Congress | |
| Kishanganj | None | Taslimuddin | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Amour | None | Abdul Jalil Mastan | Indian National Congress | |
| Baisi | None | Abdus Subhan | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Kasba | None | Pradip Kr. Das | Bharatiya Janata Party | |
| Purnea | None | Raj Kishore Kesri | Bharatiya Janata Party | |
| Korha | SC | Mahesh Paswan | Bharatiya Janata Party | |
| Barari | None | Mansoor Alam | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Katihar | None | Ram Prakash Mahto | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Kadwa | None | Himraj Singh | Independent | |
| Barsoi | None | Mahboob Alam | Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) | |
| Pranpur | None | Binod Singh Kushwaha | Bharatiya Janata Party | |
| Manihari | None | Vishwanath Singh | Janata Dal | |
| Rajmahal | None | Arun Mandal | Bharatiya Janata Party | |
| Borio | ST | Lobin Hembrom | Jharkhand Mukti Morcha | |
| Barhait | ST | Hemlal Murmu | Jharkhand Mukti Morcha | |
| Litipara | ST | Sushila Hansda | Jharkhand Mukti Morcha | |
| Pakaur | None | Alamgir Alam | Indian National Congress | |
| Maheshpur | ST | Devidhan Besra | Bharatiya Janata Party | |
| Sikaripara | ST | Nalin Soren | Jharkhand Mukti Morcha | |
| Nala | None | Bisheswar Khan | Communist Party of India | |
| Jamtara | None | Furkan Ansari | Indian National Congress | |
| Sarath | None | Shashank Shekhar Bhokta | Jharkhand Mukti Morcha | |
| Madhupur | None | Hussain Ansari | Jharkhand Mukti Morcha | |
| Deoghar | SC | Suresh Paswan | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Jarmundi | None | Devendra Kunwar | Bharatiya Janata Party | |
| Dumka | ST | Stephen Marandi | Jharkhand Mukti Morcha | |
| Jama | ST | Durga Soren | Jharkhand Mukti Morcha | |
| Poreyahat | None | Pradeep Yadav | Bharatiya Janata Party | |
| Godda | None | Sanjay Prasad Yadav | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Mahagama | None | Ashok Kumar | Bharatiya Janata Party | |
| Pirpainti | None | Shobhakant Mandal | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Colgong | None | Sadanand Singh | Indian National Congress | |
| Nathnagar | None | Sudha Shrivastava | Samata Party | |
| Bhagalpur | None | Ashwini Kumar Chaubey | Bharatiya Janata Party | |
| Gopalpur | None | Rabindra Kr. Rana | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Bihpur | None | Shailesh Kumar | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Sultanganj | SC | Ganesh Paswan | Samata Party | |
| Amarpur | None | Surendra Prasad Singh Kushwaha | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Dhuraiya | SC | Bhudeo Choudhary | Samata Party | |
| Banka | None | Ram Narayan Mandal | Bharatiya Janata Party | |
| Belhar | None | Ramdeo Yadav | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Katoria | None | Giridhari Yadav | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Chakai | None | Narendra Singh | Independent | |
| Jhajha | None | Damodar Rawat | Samata Party | |
| Tarapur | None | Shakuni Choudhary | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Kharagpur | None | Jay Prakash Narayan Yadav | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Parbatta | None | Rakesh Kr. alias Samrat Chaudhary | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Chautham | None | Panna Lal Singh Patel | Samata Party | |
| Khagaria | None | Yogendra Singh Kushwaha | Communist Party of India | |
| Alauli | SC | Pashupati Kumar Paras | Janata Dal | |
| Monghyr | None | Monazir Hassan | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Jamalpur | None | Upendra Prasad Verma | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Surajgarha | None | Prahlad Yadav | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Jamui | None | Narendra Singh | Janata Dal | |
| Sikandra | SC | Prayaag Choudhary | Kosal Party | |
| Lakhisarai | None | Krishna Chandra Pd. Singh | Bharatiya Janata Party | |
| Sheikhpura | None | Sanjay Kumar Singh | Indian National Congress | |
| Barbigha | SC | Ashok Chaudhary | Indian National Congress | |
| Asthawan | None | Raghunath Prasad Sharma | Independent | |
| Bihar | None | Syed Naushadunnabi | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Rajgir | SC | Satyadev Narain Arya | Bharatiya Janata Party | |
| Nalanda | None | Shrawan Kumar | Samata Party | |
| Islampur | None | Ramswaroop Prasad | Samata Party | |
| Hilsa | None | Ramcharitra Prasad Singh | Samata Party | |
| Chandi | None | Harinarain Singh | Samata Party | |
| Harnaut | None | Vishvamohan Choudhary | Samata Party | |
| Mokameh | None | Suraj Singh | Independent | |
| Barh | None | Bhunewashwar Prasad Singh Alias Pappu Jee | Samata Party | |
| Bakhtiarpur | None | Vinod Yadav | Bharatiya Janata Party | |
| Fatwa | SC | Dinesh Choudhary | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Masaurhi | None | Dharmendra Prasad | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Patna West | None | Navin Kishore Sinha | Bharatiya Janata Party | |
| Patna Central | None | Sushil Kumar Modi | Bharatiya Janata Party | |
| Patna East | None | Nand Kishore Yadav | Bharatiya Janata Party | |
| Dinapur | None | Lalu Prasad Yadav | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Maner | None | Bhai Virendra | Samata Party | |
| Phulwari | SC | Shyam Rajak | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Bikram | None | Ram Janam Sharma | Bharatiya Janata Party | |
| Paliganj | None | Dinanath Singh | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Sandesh | None | Vijayendra Kumar Singh Yadav | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Barhara | None | Raghwendra Pratap Singh | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Arrah | None | Amrendra Pratap Singh | Bharatiya Janata Party | |
| Shahpur | None | Shivanand Tiwari | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Brahmpur | None | Ajit Chaudhary | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Buxar | None | Sukhada Pandey | Bharatiya Janata Party | |
| Rajpur | SC | Chhedi Lal Ram | Bahujan Samaj Party | |
| Dumraon | None | Dadan Singh | Independent | |
| Jagdishpur | None | Shri Bhagwan Singh Kushwaha | Samata Party | |
| Piro | None | Narendra Kumar Pande | Samata Party | |
| Sahar | SC | Ram Naresh Ram | Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) | |
| Karakat | None | Arun Singh Kushwaha | Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) | |
| Bikramganj | None | Akhlaque Ahmad | Samata Party | |
| Dinara | None | Ram Dhani Singh | Janata Dal | |
| Ramgarh | None | Jagadanand Singh | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Mohania | SC | Suresh Pasi | Bahujan Samaj Party | |
| Bhabhua | None | Pramod Singh | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Chainpur | None | Mahabali Singh | Bahujan Samaj Party | |
| Sasaram | None | Ashok Kushwaha | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Chenari | SC | Chhedi Paswan | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Nokha | None | Rameshwar Prasad | Bharatiya Janata Party | |
| Dehri | None | Md. Ilyas Husain | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Nabinagar | None | Bheem Kumar | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Deo | SC | Suresh Paswan | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Aurangabad | None | Suresh Mehta | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Rafiganj | None | Sushil Kumar Singh | Samata Party | |
| Obra | None | Raja Ram Singh Kushwaha | Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) | |
| Goh | None | Deo Kumar Sharma | Samata Party | |
| Arwal | None | Akhilesh Prasad Singh | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Kurtha | None | Shiv Bachan Yadav | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Makhdumpur | None | Bagi Kumar Verma | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Jahanabad | None | Munni Lal Yadav | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Ghosi | None | Jagdish Sharma | Independent | |
| Belaganj | None | Surendra Prasad Yadav | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Konch | None | Mahesh Singh Yadav | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Gaya Mufassil | None | Vinod Kumar Yadvendu | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Gaya Town | None | Prem Kumar | Bharatiya Janata Party | |
| Imamganj | SC | Uday Narayan Chaudhary | Samata Party | |
| Gurua | None | Shakeel Ahmad Kha | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Bodh Gaya | SC | Jitan Ram Manjhi | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Barachatti | SC | Bhagwatee Devi | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Fatehpur | SC | Shyamdeo Paswan | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Atri | None | Rajendra Prasad Yadav | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Nawada | None | Rajballabh Prasad | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Rajauli | SC | Rajaram Paswan | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Gobindpur | None | Gayatri Devi | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Warsaliganj | None | Aruna Devi | Independent | |
| Hisua | None | Aditya Singh | Independent | |
| Kodarma | None | Annapurna Devi | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Barhi | None | Manoj Kumar Yadav | Indian National Congress | |
| Chatra | SC | Satyanand Bhokta | Bharatiya Janata Party | |
| Simaria | SC | Yogendra Nath Baitha | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Barkagaon | None | Loknath Mahto | Bharatiya Janata Party | |
| Ramgarh | None | Sabir Ahmed Quaresi Alias Bhera Singh | Communist Party of India | |
| Mandu | None | Teklal Mahto | Jharkhand Mukti Morcha | |
| Hazaribagh | None | Deo Dayal | Bharatiya Janata Party | |
| Barkatha | None | Bhubneshwar Prasad Mehta | Communist Party of India | |
| Dhanwar | None | Rabindra Kr. Ray | Bharatiya Janata Party | |
| Bagodar | None | Mahendra Prasad Singh | Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) | |
| Jamua | SC | Baldeo Hazra | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Gandey | None | Salkhan Soren | Jharkhand Mukti Morcha | |
| Giridih | None | Chandra Mohan Prasad | Bharatiya Janata Party | |
| Dumri | None | Lal Chand Mahto | Janata Dal | |
| Gomia | None | Madhav Lal Singh | Independent | |
| Bermo | None | Rajendra Prasad Singh | Indian National Congress | |
| Bokaro | None | Samaresh Singh | Independent | |
| Tundi | None | Saba Ahmad | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Baghmara | None | Jaleshwar Mahato | Samata Party | |
| Sindri | None | Fulchand Mandal | Bharatiya Janata Party | |
| Nirsa | None | Gurudas Chaterjee | Marxist Co-ordination Committee | |
| Dhanbad | None | Pashupati Nath Singh | Bharatiya Janata Party | |
| Jharia | None | Bacha Singh | Samata Party | |
| Chandankiyari | SC | Haru Rajwar | Jharkhand Mukti Morcha | |
| Baharagora | None | Dinesh Kumar Sarangi | Bharatiya Janata Party | |
| Ghatsila | ST | Pradeep Kumar Balmuchu | Indian National Congress | |
| Potka | ST | Menka Sardar | Bharatiya Janata Party | |
| Jugsalai | SC | Dulal Bhuiyan | Jharkhand Mukti Morcha | |
| Jamshedpur East | None | Raghubar Das | Bharatiya Janata Party | |
| Jamshedpur West | None | Mrigendra Pratap Singh | Bharatiya Janata Party | |
| Ichagarh | None | Arvind Kumar Singh | Bharatiya Janata Party | |
| Seraikella | ST | Anant Ram Tudu | Bharatiya Janata Party | |
| Chaibasa | ST | Bagun Sumbrui | Indian National Congress | |
| Majhgaon | ST | Badkunwar Gagrai | Bharatiya Janata Party | |
| Jaganathpur | ST | Madhu Kora | Bharatiya Janata Party | |
| Manoharpur | ST | Joba Majhi | United Goans Democratic Party | |
| Chakradharpur | ST | Chumnu Oraon | Bharatiya Janata Party | |
| Kharasawan | ST | Arjun Munda | Bharatiya Janata Party | |
| Tamar | ST | Ramesh Singh Munda | Samata Party | |
| Torpa | ST | Koche Munda | Bharatiya Janata Party | |
| Khunti | ST | Nilkanth Singh Munda | Bharatiya Janata Party | |
| Silli | None | Sudesh Mahto | United Goans Democratic Party | |
| Khijri | ST | Sawna Lakra | Indian National Congress | |
| Ranchi | None | Chandreshwar Prasad Singh | Bharatiya Janata Party | |
| Hatia | None | Ramji Lal Sharda | Bharatiya Janata Party | |
| Kanke | SC | Ram Chandra Nayak | Bharatiya Janata Party | |
| Mandar | ST | Deo Kumar Dhan | Indian National Congress | |
| Sisai | ST | Dinesh Oraon | Bharatiya Janata Party | |
| Kolebira | ST | Theodor Kiro | Indian National Congress | |
| Simdega | ST | Niel Tirkey | Indian National Congress | |
| Gumla | ST | Sudarshan Bhagat | Bharatiya Janata Party | |
| Bishnupur | ST | Chandresh Oraon | Bharatiya Janata Party | |
| Lohardaga | ST | Sadhanu Bhagat | Bharatiya Janata Party | |
| Latehar | SC | Baidynath Ram | Janata Dal | |
| Manika | ST | Yamuna Singh | Bharatiya Janata Party | |
| Panki | None | Madhu Singh | Samata Party | |
| Daltonganj | None | Inder Singh Namdhari | Janata Dal | |
| Garhwa | None | Girinath Singh | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Bhawanathpur | None | Ram Chandra Pd. Keshri | Samata Party | |
| Bishrampur | None | Chandrashekhar Dubey | Indian National Congress | |
| Chhatarpur | SC | Manoj Kumar | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
| Hussainabad | None | Sanjay Kumar Singh Yadav | Rashtriya Janata Dal | |
The result was a setback for the BJP, which in media campaigns was emerging with a massive victory. RJD emerged as the single largest party. In March 2000, Nitish Kumar was elected Chief Minister of Bihar for the first time at the behest of the Vajpayee Government in the centre. [6] NDA and allies had 151 MLAs whereas Lalu Prasad Yadav had 159 MLAs in the 324 member house. Both alliances were less than the majority mark that is 163. Nitish resigned before he could prove his numbers in the house. [7] [8] He lasted 7 days in the post. [9]
With the political manoeuvring of Lalu Yadav, Rabri Devi was sworn in as the Chief Minister again. [10] The ruling Rashtriya Janata Dal agreed to the formation of Jharkhand though a large chunk of Bihar's revenues went to the new State, because the party then had a majority of its own in the Bihar Assembly after the bifurcation of the State.
The media largely failed to gauge the ground level polarisation in Bihar. [5] According to Sanjay Kumar:
there can be no doubt about one thing that the upper-caste media was always anti-Lalu and it was either not aware of the ground level polarisation in Bihar, or deliberately ignored it. If the election result did not appear as a setback for RJD, it was largely because of the bleak picture painted by the media. Against this background, RJD's defeat had appeared like a victory. [11]
Even after serving imprisonment in connection with the 1997 scam, Lalu seemed to relish his role as the lower-caste jester. He argued that corruption charges against him and his family were the conspiracy of the upper-caste bureaucracy and media elites threatened by the rise of peasant cultivator castes.
Lalu Prasad is an Indian politician and president of the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD). He is a former Chief Minister of Bihar (1990-1997), a former Railway Minister of India (2004-2009), and a former Member of Parliament (MP) of the Lok Sabha & Rajya Sabha.
Janata Dal (United) ("People's Party (United)"), abbreviated as JD(U), is an Indian political party with political presence mainly in eastern and north-eastern India. JD(U) is recognised as a state party in the states of Bihar and Manipur and is a part of government in both the states. JD(U) heads the government in Bihar and is part of the NDA government in Manipur. JD(U) won 12 seats in the 2024 Indian general election, making it the seventh largest party in the Lok Sabha. JD(U) states that they believe in promoting social justice and lifting up marginalized peoples.
The Rashtriya Janata Dal is an Indian political party, mainly based in the state of Bihar. The party was founded in 1997 by Lalu Prasad Yadav.
Nitish Kumar is an Indian politician who has been serving as the 22nd chief minister of Bihar since 22 February 2015, having previously held the office from 2005 to 2014 and for a short period in 2000. He is Bihar's longest serving chief minister whilst also holding the post for his 9th term.
Kushwaha is a community of the Indo-Gangetic Plain that has traditionally been involved in agriculture, including beekeeping. The term has been used to represent different sub-castes of the Kachhis, Kachhvahas, Koeris and Muraos. The Kushwaha had worshipped Shiva and Shakta, but beginning in the 20th century, they claim descent from the Suryavansh (Solar) dynasty via Kusha, one of the twin sons of Rama and Sita. At present, it is a broad community formed by coming together of several caste groups with similar occupational backgrounds and socio-economic status, who, over the time, started inter-marrying among themselves and created all India caste network for caste solidarity. The communities which merged into this caste cluster includes Kachhi, Kachhwaha, Kushwaha, Mali, Marrar, Saini, Sonkar, Murai, Shakya, Maurya, Koeri and Panara.
The politics of Bihar, an eastern state of India, is dominated by regional political parties. As of 2021, the main political groups are Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Janata Dal (United) (JDU), Indian National Congress (INC), Left Front, Lok Janshakti Party (LJP), Hindustani Awam Morcha (HAM). There are also some smaller regional parties, including Samata Party, Hindustani Awam Morcha, Rashtriya Jan Jan Party, Rashtriya Lok Janata Dal, Jan Adhikar Party and Vikassheel Insaan Party, Lok Janshakti Party and Rashtriya Lok Janshakti Party, which play a vital role in politics of state. As of 2024, Bihar is currently ruled by NDA, after JDU break out from Mahagatbandhan coalition and returned to NDA fold.
The 11th Bihar Legislative Assembly elections were held in March 1995, to elect the 324 members of the Bihar Legislative Assembly. Janata Dal got a decisive victory in the state; political manoeuvre ensured Lalu Prasad Yadav's victory in the chief ministership. According to political scientist Sanjay Kumar, this election set a different trend in caste based politics of the state of Bihar, as in this election, there were two main political blocs in the state contesting for power. The either side of this power struggle was led by Backward Castes. It was the election in which the Forward Castes were pushed to margins in the politics of state.
Raghopur is an assembly constituency in Vaishali district in the Indian state of Bihar. It consists of Raghopur and Bidupur.
The Koeri, also referred to as Kushwaha and more recently self-described as Maurya in several parts of northern India are an Indian non-elite caste, found largely in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh, whose traditional occupation was agriculture. According to Arvind Narayan Das they were horticulturists rather than agriculturists. They are also recorded as performing the work of Mahajan in credit market of rural parts of Bihar and Bengal in 1880s. Koeris have attempted Sanskritisation— as part of social resurgence. During the British rule in India, Koeris were described as "agriculturalists" along with Kurmis and other cultivating castes. They are described as a dominant caste in various opinions.
The Paswan, also known as Dusadh, are a Dalit community from eastern India. They are found mainly in the states of Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and Jharkhand. The Urdu word Paswan means bodyguard or "one who defends". The origin of the word, per the belief of the community, lies in their participation in the battle against Siraj-ud-daulah, the Nawab of Bengal at the behest of British East India Company, after which they were rewarded with the post of Chowkidars and lathi wielding tax collector for the Zamindars. They follow certain rituals such as walking on fire to assert their valour.
Chhedi Paswan is a former member of 16th Lok Sabha and a former member of Bihar Legislative Assembly. He represented the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) from 2014 to 2024. At various points, he has been with Janata Party, then its Charan Singh faction, then the reunited Janata Dal, Bahujan Samaj Party, Nationalist Congress Party, Lalu Prasad Yadav's RJD and Nitish Kumar's JD(U).
Rashtriya Lok Samta Party was a political party in India led by Upendra Kushwaha. It was launched on 3 March 2013 and was based in the state of Bihar. The party came into existence as a result of a feud between Nitish Kumar and Upendra Kushwaha, after which Kushwaha left The Nitish Kumar lead Janata Dal (United) and formed his own party. It has faced multiple rebellions and desertions since 2015. After the relations between Nitish and Kushwaha normalized, Upendra Kushwaha merged RLSP into JDU on 14 March 2021, with this, the party ceased to exist.
Upendra Kumar Singh, commonly known as Upendra Kushwaha is an Indian politician, and a former Member of Bihar Legislative Council and Bihar Legislative Assembly. He has also served as Minister of State for Human Resources and Development in the Government of India. Kushwaha is a former Member of Parliament (MP) from the Karakat constituency in Rohtas district, Bihar, and a former member of the Rajya Sabha. He was the leader of Rashtriya Samata Party (RSP), his own party, which merged into Janata Dal (United) (JDU) in 2009. Later, he formed Rashtriya Lok Samata Party (RLSP), which also merged with JD(U) in 2021. On 20 February 2023, Kushwaha resigned from all positions in Janata Dal (United) and formed his own party called Rashtriya Lok Morcha due to his political problems with JD(U) and Nitish Kumar. Kushwaha contested the Lok Sabha election of 2024 from Karakat constituency and finished at a distant third position. However, he was elected unopposed to Rajya Sabha in August 2024.
Jitan Ram Manjhi is an Indian politician, serving as the Minister of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises since 2024. He is currently a Member of Parliament from Gaya constituency and was Bihar's 23rd Chief Minister from 20 May 2014 to 20 February 2015. He was the founding President of Hindustani Awam Morcha (HAM). Previously, he had served as minister for scheduled castes and scheduled tribes welfare in Nitish Kumar's cabinet. He has been a minister in several Bihar state governments, under multiple chief ministers like Chandrashekhar Singh, Bindeshwari Dubey, Satyendra Narayan Sinha, Jagannath Mishra, Lalu Prasad Yadav and Rabri Devi.
The Legislative Assembly election was held over five phases in Bihar through October–November 2015 before the end of the tenure of the prior Legislative Assembly of Bihar on 29 November 2015.
Mahagathbandhan, also known as Grand Alliance, is a coalition of political parties in the Eastern state of Bihar in India, formed ahead of the 2015 Vidhan Sabha elections in Bihar. The alliance consists of Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), Indian National Congress (INC) and Left parties including Communist Party of India (CPI), Communist Party of India (Marxist–Leninist) Liberation-CPIML (Liberation) and Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPIM), with Tejashwi Yadav as the chairperson.
Samrat Choudhary, also known by his alias Rakesh Kumar is an Indian politician, who is currently serving as Deputy Chief minister of Bihar under Nitish Kumar. He is a member of the Bihar Legislative Council from the Bharatiya Janata Party. He has been the party president of BJP Bihar State unit from March 2023 to 25 July 2024. He has also remained Member of Legislative Assembly and a minister in Government of Bihar in Rashtriya Janata Dal government. Chaudhary has been a former Vice President of BJP for the state of Bihar and currently elected for the second term as MLC in 2020 after his first term ended in 2019. In 2014, Samrat planned a split in Rashtriya Janata Dal by defecting thirteen MLAs as splinter group of the party, later joining the BJP. In 2022, he was selected as the Leader of Opposition in Bihar Legislative Council. In 2024, he was also made the convener of Group of Ministers on Goods and Service Tax rate rationalisation panel.
The Upper Backward Caste is a term used to describe the middle castes in Bihar, whose social and ritual status was not very low and which have traditionally been involved in the agricultural and animal husbandry related activities in the past. They have also been involved in low scale trade to some extent. The Koeri, Kurmi, Yadav, and Bania are categorised as the upper-backwards amongst the Other Backward Class group; while the various other caste groups which constitute the OBC, a group comprising 51% of the population of state of Bihar, have been classified as lower backwards. The upper-backwards, also called upper OBC, represent approximately 20.3% of the population of Bihar. These agricultural caste were the biggest beneficiaries of the land reform drive which was undertaken in the 1950s in the state and they strengthened their economic position by gaining a significant portion of excess land under the ceiling laws, which prohibited the ownership of land above a certain ceiling.
The Luv-Kush equation is a political term used in the context of the politics of Bihar, to denote the alliance of the agricultural Kurmi and the Koeri caste, which was assumed to be approximately 15% of the state's population The alliance of these two caste groups has remained the support base of Nitish Kumar, as against the MY equation of Lalu Prasad Yadav, which constitutes Muslims and the Yadavs. Caste consciousness and the quest for political representation largely drive the politics of Bihar. The political alliance of the Koeri and the Kurmi castes, termed the "Luv-Kush equation" was formed when a massive Kurmi Chetna Rally was organised by members of the Kurmi community in 1994 against the alleged casteist politics of Lalu Yadav, who was blamed by contemporary community leaders for promoting Yadavs in politics and administration.
The 2024 Indian general election was held in Bihar in all 7 phases from 19 April to 1 June to elect 40 members of the 18th Lok Sabha, with the results declared on 4 June.