5 Bihar legislative seats up for election on March 31

The three teaching and two graduate constituencies of the Bihar Legislative Council will go to polls on March 31, while the counting of votes will take place on April 5.

The Election Commission on Monday announced the biennial poll schedule for two teaching constituencies (Gaya and Kosi) and two graduate constituencies (Saran and Gaya) and polled one (Saran) teaching constituency.

According to a press release by the commission, the elections in Gaya & Kosi Teachers Constituencies and Saran & Gaya Graduates Constituencies are necessary as their respective members are scheduled to retire on May 8 this year. Those retiring are Sanjeeva Shyam Singh (Gaya teachers), Sanjeev Kumar Singh (Kosi teachers), Awadhesh Narain Singh (Gaya graduates) and Virendra Narayan Yadav (Saran graduates). Awadhesh is a former chairman of the Legislative Council.

The bypoll in the Saran teachers' constituency was necessitated by the untimely death of sitting MLC Kedar Nath Pandey on October 24 last year. Nomination papers in all five constituencies will be filed soon after the formal notice for the election is issued on March 6, with March 13 as the deadline for filing papers.

"Scrutiny of nominations will be held on March 14, while March 16 is the last date for withdrawal of candidature. The entire election process will be completed by April 11," the commission said on Monday.

The State Legislative Council has a total of 75 seats. Of these, 27 are elected from the Vidhan Sabha Constituency, 24 from the Local Authority Constituency, six each from the Faculty and Graduate Constituencies, while the remaining 12 are nominated by the Governor in Council of the State Government.

Of the total six teacher districts, three will go to the polls on March 31. Similarly, out of the total six precincts of graduates, two are up for election.