The upcoming Assembly elections in Bihar are set to feature an intriguing ‘friendly contest’ within the INDIA bloc in the Bachhwara constituency, located in Begusarai district. Both the Congress party, which has nominated its youth wing leader Prakash Garib Das, and the Communist Party of India (CPI), whose former MLA Awadesh Roy has also filed his papers, are vying for the same seat.
Sources within the Congress indicate that the party leadership is actively discussing the matter with its alliance partners, particularly the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) and other Left parties. There’s a strong possibility that the CPI candidate might eventually withdraw their nomination to resolve this intra-alliance overlap.
Meanwhile, the broader Bihar Assembly election campaign continues to heat up, with prominent figures like Amit Shah expected to hold rallies in areas such as Saran and engage in intellectual discussions in Patna.
The Congress had already released its initial list of 48 candidates for the Bihar Assembly elections on the night of October 16, 2025. This list included several incumbent MLAs, such as State unit chief Rajesh Ram contesting from Kutumba and CLP leader Shakeel Ahmad Khan from Kadwa.
Notably, the party made these candidate announcements before the final seat-sharing agreement with its ‘Mahagathbandhan’ allies, including the RJD, had been entirely hammered out. The deadlines for filing nominations are tight, with October 17, 2025, being the last day for the first phase, and October 20, 2025, for the second phase.
According to insiders from the INDIA bloc, the RJD has reportedly agreed to allocate 61 seats to the Congress. Discussions are still ongoing regarding a few crucial constituencies that the Congress is particularly keen on securing.
A source within the INDIA bloc stated that the full picture would emerge once the remaining candidate lists are released by the other ‘Mahagathbandhan’ partners and the Congress. Reflecting on past performance, the Congress contested 70 seats in the 2020 elections but only managed to win 19.
The Bihar Assembly elections are scheduled for November 6 and 11, 2025, with vote counting to follow on November 14, 2025.