The Election Commission of India (ECI) on Wednesday issued comprehensive directives to all enforcement agencies to prevent the misuse of money power, freebies, drugs, narcotics, and liquor during the upcoming two-phase Bihar Assembly elections and bye-elections in eight Assembly constituencies. The measures aim to ensure free and fair polls by curbing inducements that could sway voters.
In an official statement, the ECI announced that expenditure observers have been deployed across constituencies to closely monitor candidates' election expenses. These observers arrived at their respective constituencies on the day the election notifications were issued. The ECI stated, “During the visit they will meet all the teams engaged in expenditure monitoring.”
Additionally, “Flying Squads, Surveillance Teams, [and] Video Surveillance Teams will be vigilant round the-clock to monitor any suspected instances of money power or other inducements being used to sway the voters.”
The poll body reported that enforcement agencies have already seized items worth Rs 33.97 crore, including cash, liquor, drugs, and freebies, since the election announcement. These seizures underscore the ECI’s proactive stance in tackling electoral malpractices.
Also Read: Bihar elections: Polling Nov 6 & 11, results Nov 14
In a related development, the ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA) finalised its seat-sharing arrangement for the Bihar elections on Sunday, October 13, 2025. Under the agreement, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Janata Dal (United) (JDU) will each contest 101 seats, the Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) (LJP) will field candidates on 29 seats, the Rashtriya Lok Morcha on six seats, and the Hindustani Awam Morcha (Secular) (HAM) on six seats. The NDA coalition comprises the BJP, JDU, LJP (Ram Vilas), HAM (Secular), and Rashtriya Lok Morcha.
The NDA will face stiff competition from the INDIA bloc, led by Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader Tejashwi Yadav, alongside the Congress, the Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) (CPI-ML) under Deepankar Bhattacharya, the Communist Party of India (CPI), the Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPM), and Mukesh Sahani’s Vikasheel Insaan Party (VIP).
Adding a new dynamic to the electoral battle, Bihar will witness the debut of Prashant Kishor’s Jan Suraaj Party as a fresh contender in these elections.
Also Read: ECI deploys 8.5 lakh officials for Bihar elections
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