From left: Bihar Assembly Speaker Nand Kishor Yadav, Deputy CM Samrat Chaudhary and BJP President JP Nadda
Photo credit: PTI File Photo
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Monday announced its first list of candidates for the upcoming Bihar Assembly elections, marking the formal start of its campaign in the state. The list includes several prominent faces, including both Deputy Chief Ministers, while also signalling a generational shift with the denial of tickets to a number of senior leaders.
Deputy Chief Ministers Samrat Chaudhary and Vijay Sinha will contest from Tarapur and Lakhisarai, respectively. Health minister Mangal Pandey will contest from Siwan, and senior party leader and also a minister Nitin Nabin, will once again contest from Bankipur.
Former Deputy Chief Minister Renu Devi has been fielded from Bettiah, while Trivikram Singh will contest from Aurangabad. Shooter-turned-politician Shreyasi Singh has been given the ticket from Jamui, and former Union Minister Ramkripal Yadav will contest from Danapur.
Generational shift: Nand Kishore Yadav denied ticket
In a major move, the party has denied a ticket to seven-time MLA and current Speaker Nand Kishore Yadav, who represents the Patna Sahib Assembly seat. The veteran leader, one of the most recognizable BJP faces in Bihar, took the decision with grace.
In a video message shared on social media, Yadav said, “I stand by the BJP’s decision. The party has given me a lot. I have no complaints. I congratulate the new generation and thank the people of Patna Sahib for their love and trust over the years.”
The BJP has reportedly dropped 16 sitting MLAs in this first list, signalling its intent to refresh the party’s line-up ahead of the high-stakes election. Among those denied tickets are Mithilesh Kumar (Sitamarhi Urban), Motilal Prasad (Riga), Atul Kumar (Vikram), Amarendra Pratap Singh (Ara), Arun Sinha (Kumhrar), and Nikki Hembram (Katoria).
Nine women candidates in first list
The party has also emphasized women’s representation, giving tickets to nine women candidates. The list includes Renu Devi, Gayatri Devi, Aruna Devi, Rama Nishad, Shreyasi Singh, Devanti Yadav, Nisha Singh, Kavita Devi, and Sweety Singh.
Here is the complete list of 71 candidates announced today.
Sl No. | Constituency | Candidate | Incumbent | Incumbent Party | Retained/Changed |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Bettiah | Renu Devi | Renu Devi (BJP) | BJP | Retained |
2 | Raxaul | Pramod Kumar Sinha | Pramod Kumar Sinha (BJP) | BJP | Retained |
3 | Pipra | Shyambabu Prasad Yadav | Shyambabu Prasad Yadav (BJP) | BJP | Retained |
4 | Madhuban | Rana Randhir Singh | Rana Randhir Singh (BJP) | BJP | Retained |
5 | Motihari | Pramod Kumar | Pramod Kumar (BJP) | BJP | Retained |
6 | Dhaka | Pawan Jaiswal | Pawan Jaiswal (BJP) | BJP | Retained |
7 | Riga | Baidyanath Prasad | Moti Lal Prasad (BJP) | BJP | Changed |
8 | Bathnaha | Anil Kumar Ram | Anil Kumar Ram (BJP) | BJP | Retained |
9 | Parihar | Gayatri Devi | Gayatri Devi (BJP) | BJP | Retained |
10 | Sitamarhi | Sunil Kumar Pintu | Mithilesh Kumar (BJP) | BJP | Changed |
11 | Benipatti | Vinod Narayan Jha | Vinod Narayan Jha (BJP) | BJP | Retained |
12 | Khajauli | Arun Shankar Prasad | Arun Shankar Prasad (BJP) | BJP | Retained |
13 | Bisfi | Haribhushan Thakur Bachaul | Haribhushan Thakur Bachaul (BJP) | BJP | Retained |
14 | Rajnagar (SC) | Sujeet Paswan | Ram Prit Paswan (BJP) | BJP | Changed |
15 | Jhanjharpur | Nitish Mishra | Nitish Mishra (BJP) | BJP | Retained |
16 | Chhatapur | Neeraj Kumar Singh Bablu | Neeraj Kumar Singh Bablu (BJP) | BJP | Retained |
17 | Narpatganj | Devanti Yadav | Jai Prakash Yadav (BJP) | BJP | Retained |
18 | Forbesganj | Vidya Sagar Keshri | Vidya Sagar Keshri (BJP) | BJP | Retained |
19 | Sikti | Vijay Kumar Mandal | Vijay Kumar Mandal (BJP) | BJP | Retained |
20 | Kishanganj | Sweety Singh | Sweety Singh (BJP) | BJP | Retained |
21 | Banmankhi (SC) | Krishna Kumar Rishi | Krishna Kumar Rishi (BJP) | BJP | Retained |
22 | Purnia | Vijay Kumar Khemka | Vijay Kumar Khemka (BJP) | BJP | Retained |
23 | Katihar | Tarkishore Prasad | Tarkishore Prasad (BJP) | BJP | Retained |
24 | Pranpur | Nisha Singh | Nisha Singh (BJP) | BJP | Retained |
25 | Korha (SC) | Kavita Devi | Kavita Devi (BJP) | BJP | Retained |
26 | Saharsa | Alok Ranjan Jha | Alok Ranjan Jha (BJP) | BJP | Retained |
27 | Gaura Bauram | Sujit Kumar Singh | Swarna Singh (VIP) | VIP | |
28 | Darbhanga | Sanjay Saraogi | Sanjay Saraogi (BJP) | BJP | Retained |
29 | Keoti | Murari Mohan Jha | Murari Mohan Jha (BJP) | BJP | Retained |
30 | Jale | Jibesh Kumar Mishra | Jibesh Kumar Mishra (BJP) | BJP | Retained |
31 | Aurai | Rama Nishad | Ram Surat Ray (BJP) | BJP | Changed |
32 | Kurhani | Kedar Prasad Gupta | Kedar Prasad Gupta (BJP) | BJP | Retained |
33 | Baruraj | Arun Kumar Singh | Arun Kumar Singh (BJP) | BJP | Retained |
34 | Sahebganj | Raju Kumar Singh | Raju Kumar Singh (VIP) | VIP | |
35 | Baikunthpur | Mithilesh Tiwari | Mithilesh Tiwari (BJP) | BJP | Retained |
36 | Siwan | Mangal Pandey | Om Prakash Yadav (BJP) | BJP | Changed |
37 | Daraundha | Karnjeet Singh | Karnjeet Singh (BJP) | BJP | Retained |
38 | Goriyakothi | Devesh Kant Singh | Devesh Kant Singh (BJP) | BJP | Retained |
39 | Taraiya | Janak Singh | Janak Singh (BJP) | BJP | Retained |
40 | Amnour | Krishan Kumar Mantoo | Krishan Kumar Mantoo (BJP) | BJP | Retained |
41 | Hajipur | Awadhesh Singh | Awadhesh Singh (BJP) | BJP | Retained |
42 | Lalganj | Sanjay Kumar Singh | Sanjay Kumar Singh (BJP) | BJP | Retained |
43 | Patepur (SC) | Lakhendra Kumar Raushan | Lakhendra Kumar Raushan (BJP) | BJP | Retained |
44 | Mohiuddinnagar | Rajesh Kumar Singh | Rajesh Kumar Singh (BJP) | BJP | Retained |
45 | Bachhwara | Surendra Mehta | Surendra Mehta (BJP) | BJP | Retained |
46 | Teghra | Rajnish Kumar | Birendra Kumar JD(U) | JD (U) | |
47 | Begusarai | Kundan Kumar | Kundan Kumar (BJP) | BJP | Retained |
48 | Bhagalpur | Rohit Pandey | Rohit Pandey (BJP) | BJP | Retained |
49 | Banka | Ram Narayan Mandal | Ram Narayan Mandal (BJP) | BJP | Retained |
50 | Katoria (ST) | Puran Lal Tudu | Nikki Hembrom (BJP) | BJP | Changed |
51 | Tarapur | Samrat Chaudhary | Mewa Lal Choudhary JD(U) | JD(U) | |
52 | Munger | Kumar Pranay | Pranav Kumar Yadav (BJP) | BJP | Changed |
53 | Lakhisarai | Vijay Kumar Sinha | Vijay Kumar Sinha (BJP) | BJP | Retained |
54 | Biharsharif | Sunil Kumar | Sunil Kumar (BJP) | BJP | Retained |
55 | Digha | Sanjiv Chaurasia | Sanjiv Chaurasia (BJP) | BJP | Retained |
56 | Bankipur | Nitin Nabin | Nitin Nabin (BJP) | BJP | Retained |
57 | Kumhrar | Sanjay Gupta | Arun Kumar Sinha (BJP) | BJP | Changed |
58 | Patna Sahib | Ratnesh Kushwaha | Nand Kishore Yadav (BJP) | BJP | Changed |
59 | Danapur | Ramkripal Yadav | Asha Devi Yadav (BJP) | BJP | Changed |
60 | Bikram | Siddharth Saurav | Atul Kumar (BJP) | BJP | Changed |
61 | Barhara | Raghvendra Pratap Singh | Raghvendra Pratap Singh (BJP) | BJP | Retained |
62 | Arrah | Sanjay Singh "Tiger" | Amarendra Pratap Singh (BJP) | BJP | Changed |
63 | Tarari | Vishal Prashant | Kaushal Kumar Singh (BJP) | BJP | Changed |
64 | Arwal | Manoj Sharma | Dipak Kumar Sharma (BJP) | BJP | Changed |
65 | Aurangabad | Trivikram Singh | Ramadhar Singh (BJP) | BJP | Changed |
66 | Gurua | Upendra Dangi | Rajiv Nandan Dangi (BJP) | BJP | Changed |
67 | Gaya Town | Prem Kumar | Prem Kumar (BJP) | BJP | Retained |
68 | Wazirganj | Birendra Singh | Birendra Singh (BJP) | BJP | Retained |
69 | Hisua | Anil Singh | Anil Singh (BJP) | BJP | Retained |
70 | Warsaliganj | Aruna Devi | Aruna Devi (BJP) | BJP | Retained |
71 | Jamui | Shreyasi Singh | Shreyasi Singh (BJP) | BJP | Retained |