Bihar Assembly Elections 2025: EC says elaborate arrangements in place, asks media to rely only on official results

New Delhi: Elaborate arrangements are in place across all 243 constituencies of Bihar for counting of votes on November 14, the Election Commission said on Thursday.

Counting will be conducted by 243 returning officers (ROs) in the presence of 243 counting observers and the candidates or their agents.

As many as 4,372 counting tables staffed with one counting supervisor, counting assistant and micro-observer at each table have been set up, the poll authority said.

More than 18,000 counting agents appointed by the candidates will also oversee the counting process, it pointed out.

Counting will commence at 8 AM and according to the EC's directions, postal ballot counting will begin first. Counting of electronic voting machines (EVMs) will begin thereafter at 8.30 AM.

Counting of postal ballots is to be completed before the penultimate round of EVM counting, according to a recent EC direction.

Postal ballots are counted in the presence of candidates or their counting agents by the RO or assistant RO.

During EVM counting, control units are brought to the counting tables round-wise and shown to the counting agents to verify that the seals are intact and serial numbers match the records in part I of Form 17C.

The number of votes recorded in EVMs is cross-verified with entries in Form 17C. In case of any mismatch, VVPAT slips from that polling station are to be counted mandatorily.

After completion of EVM counting, a random selection of five polling stations per constituency is made for VVPAT verification. The slips are matched with EVM results in the presence of candidates and their counting agents.

Results will be compiled and made available round-wise and constituency-wise by the respective ROs on the official EC results portal.

"The commission advises all to refer only to this portal for accurate and verified updates and not rely on any hearsay or unofficial sources. TV channels and internet media channels are also advised accordingly," the EC cautioned.