Bihar Assembly Elections Schedule Likely In October, Counting Expected By November 20: Report

Bihar Assembly election schedule announcement is expected in early October after the voter list updates, a report stated. Polling is likely in November, post-Chhath Puja, with results mid-November.

The 2025 Bihar election is likely to be primarily a two-bloc fight between the INDIA and NDA.

Source : PTI

The Election Commission is set to unveil the schedule for the Bihar Assembly elections in October, once the updated voter list under the Special Summary Revision (SIR) is published, sources told CNN-News18.

According to officials news website News18 spoke to, the announcement could come in the first or early second week of October, shortly after Durga Puja and Dussehra. Polling is expected to be held in two or three phases in November, likely after Chhath Puja.

Counting of votes is tentatively planned between November 15 and 20, with the entire election process to be wrapped up before the November 22 deadline, the report said.

NDA vs INDIA Bloc

This election will once again test the strength of Bihar’s two main alliances. The ruling NDA, which includes the BJP, JD(U), and LJP, is eyeing another term under Nitish Kumar. On the other side, the INDIA bloc, led by the RJD along with Congress and Left parties, aims to unseat him.

Currently, the NDA holds a majority in the 243-member Assembly with 131 MLAs: BJP has 80, JD(U) 45, HAM(S) 4, plus support from two Independents. The INDIA bloc has 111 MLAs, with RJD leading the pack at 77, followed by Congress with 19, CPI(ML) 11, CPI(M) 2, and CPI 2.

Disputes Over Voter List

Amid the voter list revision, political tempers have flared. On September 1, Congress claimed it had submitted nearly 89 lakh complaints to the Election Commission regarding irregularities.

The state’s Chief Election Officer, however, countered this, saying the party failed to follow the prescribed procedure for filing objections. Congress leader Pawan Khera accused the poll body of rejecting their complaints outright and claimed that officials were insisting no objections had been filed.

Meanwhile, the CPI(ML) Liberation submitted 118 claims and objections under the SIR 2025 process—103 seeking exclusions and 15 requesting inclusions. The window for filing such claims and objections closed on September 1.

Even though the deadline for filing claims and objections to Bihar’s draft electoral rolls closed on Monday, September 1, 2025, the Election Commission of India has clarified that the window isn’t entirely shut.

According to the Commission’s special intensive revision (SIR) order issued on June 24, applications for inclusion or exclusion of names will still be entertained until the final date of nominations for the upcoming Assembly elections.

There is a catch, though. Any fresh applications accepted during this extended period will not be reflected in the final voter list scheduled for release on September 30. Instead, they will be processed as separate additions and incorporated later.