Ahead of Friday’s biennial elections to eight seats of the Bihar Legislative Council, State JD(U) president Umesh Kushwaha and party MLC Sanjay Kumar Singh on Thursday met Patna Graduates’ seat candidate Neeraj Kumar for a closed-door meeting.

The seat, from which Mr. Neeraj is seeking a fourth consecutive term, has become the centre of attention after JD(U)’s Mokama MLA Anant Singh declared support for Jan Suraaj Party (JSP) candidate Anuj Kumar Singh.

Mr. Anant claimed that Mr. Neeraj had opposed him in every Assembly election held in Mokama.

Polling for the four Graduates’ and four Teachers’ constituencies will be held from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Counting is scheduled for October 27. The terms of the sitting MLCs are set to expire on November 16.

The ruling allies BJP and JD(U) are contesting four seats each while the JSP is contesting all eight.

Bid to placate

The JD(U) twice tried to broker peace between Mr. Anant and Mr. Neeraj. It had tasked Munger MP and Union Panchayati Raj Minister Rajiv Ranjan Singh alias Lalan Singh to mediate. Mr. Lalan later said Mr. Anant had “reservations and grudges which the party should have addressed earlier”.

Former Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary and Deputy Chief Minister Vijay Kumar Sinha had visited Mr. Neeraj after he was admitted to a private hospital on Monday for heart-related issues.

“I am not aware of what is going on for the election as my workers have taken the mantle on my behalf. I will go and find out,” Mr. Neeraj said after he was discharged on Wednesday.

Published – October 23, 2026 02:25 am IST