Bihar polls: Just 35 Muslim candidates fielded, highlighting underrepresentation
Patna: A political controversy has surfaced in Bihar ahead of the assembly elections, with the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) and other parties facing allegations of marginalising Muslim candidates in the allocation of party tickets.
Only 35 Muslim candidates have been fielded across parties, even though Muslims constitute nearly 17.7% of the state’s population. The RJD and Congress, two key allies of the INDIA bloc who project themselves as advocates of Muslim representation, have together fielded 28 candidates from the community, as reported by The New Indian Express on Sunday.
The RJD, contesting 143 seats, has given tickets to 18 Muslim candidates, while the Congress, contesting 61 seats, has fielded 10. The CPI(ML)-Liberation has nominated two, while the Vikassheel Insaan Party (VIP) led by Mukesh Sahani, another INDIA bloc partner, has fielded none.
In the NDA camp, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar’s Janata Dal (United) has nominated four Muslim candidates out of the 101 seats it is contesting. The Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) led by Union Minister Chirag Paswan has fielded one Muslim candidate among its 29 nominees, while the BJP has not given any ticket to Muslims.
Muslim representation in the Bihar Assembly has fluctuated over time. Between 1990 and 2020, it averaged around 8%. The 2020 Assembly had 19 Muslim MLAs (7.81%) in the 243-member House, while the 2015 House had 24 Muslim MLAs (9.87%), one of the community’s highest levels of representation, added the report.
Political analysts quoted in the report note that the decline in Muslim representation reflects both shifting party strategies and changing alliance structures. They trace the community’s political realignment to the aftermath of the 1989 Bhagalpur riots and the Ram Rath Yatra, which weakened Muslim support for the Congress. RJD chief Lalu Prasad subsequently positioned his party as a political home for Muslims and other marginalised groups, building a durable support base on a platform of social justice and inclusive empowerment.
However, analysts suggest that secular parties now exercise caution in distributing tickets to Muslim candidates, fearing polarisation of votes that could benefit rival parties.
The 243-member Bihar Assembly will go to polls in two phases on November 6 and November 11, with the results set to be announced on November 14.
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Why is govt in 'hurry' to amend women's quota law, must call all-party meeting after polls: Kharge
New Delhi, Mar 26 (PTI): Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge wrote to Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju on Thursday, asking why the government was in a "great hurry" to amend the women's quota law.
In his letter to Rijiju, Kharge also reiterated that an all-party meeting should be held on the matter after the current round of assembly elections is completed in April.
Kharge's letter came in response to one from the Union minister to the Congress chief seeking a meeting with the party on plans to amend the Nari Vandan Adhiniyam, 2023, for its implementation.
"I have just received your letter on 26th March 2026. Opposition parties have already written to you on 24th March 2026, suggesting that an all-party meeting be held after April 29th, 2026, to discuss the implementation of the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam, 2023," the Congress president said.
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"I simply fail to understand why the government is in such great hurry to further amend a Constitutional Amendment Act, 30 months after it was initially passed. We are all extremely busy with the election campaign. That is the reason why we had suggested that the meeting be held after the election campaign is over," Kharge said.
This will, in no way, affect the implementation of the amended Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam, 2023, from the 2029 Lok Sabha election onwards, he said.
"In fact, on 21st September, 2023, during the debate in the Rajya Sabha, I had myself demanded the immediate implementation of Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam, 2023, but the government had not agreed with my demand. I once again request you to convene an all-party meeting any time after April 29, 2026," Kharge said.
Several opposition parties on Tuesday wrote to the government, asking for an all-party meeting to be convened to discuss the modalities of the implementation of the women's quota law.
In a letter to Rijiju, the opposition leaders had said the meeting should be held after the current round of assembly elections is completed in April.
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"You may recall that I had written to you on March 16, 2026, requesting that an all-party meeting chaired by the PM be convened at the earliest to discuss, as desired by you, the modalities and roadmap for the implementation of the Nari Vandan Adhiniyam, 2023," the letter written on Congress president Kharge's letterhead had said.
The letter had signatories from several opposition parties, except the Trinamool Congress.
It came after indications that the government was planning to bring bills to ensure that the women's reservation law is implemented before the completion of the delimitation exercise for Lok Sabha and assembly constituencies.
The opposition leaders, in their letter, said that the government was planning a further amendment to the Nari Shakti Vandan Bill passed in September 2023. The law is officially known as the Constitution (106th Amendment) Act.
Taking a swipe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Congress had on Wednesday claimed that the "U-turn Ustad" now wants to implement the women's reservation law without completing the delimitation and census exercises by passing amendments at a "special two-day session" of Parliament in the next fortnight.
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The opposition party had alleged that this was a "weapon of mass diversion" to change the narrative from the government's "foreign policy failures and setbacks and from the LPG and energy crisis facing the country".
Congress general secretary in charge of communications, Jairam Ramesh, had said the Modi government was also planning to increase the size of the Lok Sabha and the Vidhan Sabhas by 50 per cent, which also needed careful deliberation.
The provision to provide 33 per cent reservation to women in the Lok Sabha and state assemblies was brought by amending the Constitution in 2023, but it will come into effect after the completion of the delimitation exercise.
