Bihar Bypolls: Three-Corner Fight Likely As Four Seats Go Up For Grabs On Nov 13

The Bihar bypolls. Four assembly seats face a three-way contest between the RJD-led Mahagathbandhan, BJP-led NDA, and Prashant Kishor's Jan Suraaj Party.

The INDIA bloc will be looking to pick itself up and dust itself off after the major electoral thrashing in Haryana and its heavy loss in the Bihar Lok Sabha elections. The Bihar bypolls, scheduled to be held on Wednesday, November 13, are likely to be a triangular contest between the RJD-led Mahagathbandhan (INDIA partners in Bihar), the BJP-led NDA and Prashant Kishor's Jan Suraaj Party. Four assembly seats in Bihar — Ramgarh, Tarari, Imamganj, and Belaganj — will be up for grabs in the bypolls.

How Bihar Assembly Seat Vacancies Opened Up

The seats vacancies opened up after their representatives were elected to the Lok Sabha. In Tarari, former MLA Sudama Prasad of the Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) won a seat in Bhojpur, while Ramgarh MLA Sudhakar Singh (RJD) secured a seat in Buxar. Similarly, Jitan Ram Manjhi, from Hindustani Awam Morcha-Secular, which is now part of the NDA, won in Gaya and was appointed the Union Minister of Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises. Meanwhile, Belaganj’s Surendra Prasad Yadav (RJD) won the Jehanabad Lok Sabha seat.

Candidates Contesting Bihar Bypolls

Tarari Bypoll

In Tarari, BJP has fielded Vishal Prashant, son of former four-time MLA Narendra Kumar Pandey, also known as Sunil Kumar Pandey. After his last win in 2010 as a JD(U) MLA, Pandey fielded his wife on a Lok Janshakti Party ticket in 2015 but lost. Running as an independent in 2020, Pandey secured second place, while CPI-ML won the seat, and BJP came third. This time, the BJP chose Vishal Prashant to go up against CPI-ML's Raju Yadav. Prashant Kishor’s Jan Suraaj Party, which initially chose retired Army officer General Sri Krishna Singh, later replaced him with Kiran Singh due to eligibility concerns.

Ramgarh Bypoll

In Ramgarh, the RJD chose to field Ajit Kumar Singh, son of the party's state President Jagdanand Singh against BJP's Ashok Kumar Singh. Prashant Kishor's Jan Suraaj Party has fielded Sushil Singh Kushwaha against the two. Ramgarh has been an RJD stronghold, with Jagdanand Singh winning the seat multiple times. Tejashwi Yadav and other RJD leaders campaigned for Ajit, while BJP leaders and Prashant Kishor rallied for their candidates.

Belaganj Bypoll

In Belaganj, heavyweights Vishwanath Kumar Singh (RJD), son of Surendra Prasad Yadav, and Manorama Devi (JD-U), wife of Bindi Yadav and mother of Rocky Yadav—linked to a 2016 road rage incident—are up against Jan Suraaj’s Mohd. Amjad, making this a three-way competition. Muslims and the economically backwards class form a substantial voter base here, and Prashant Kishor has been actively campaigning, presenting his party as an alternative to the NDA and Mahagathbandhan.

Imamganj Bypoll

In Imamganj, the contest will again be three-sided with HAM's Deepa Santosh Manjhi, RJD’s Raushan Kumar Manjhi, and Jan Suraaj Party's Jitendra Paswan in the fray. A reserved seat for scheduled caste candidates, the two candidates from the Manjhi community could allow Paswan to claim victory.