- NDA is poised to win all five Rajya Sabha seats in Bihar elections
- Mahagathbandhan failed to secure 41 votes despite AIMIM and BSP support
- Three Congress MLAs and one RJD MLA abstained from voting
In the Rajya Sabha elections being held for five seats in Bihar, the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) is considered certain to win all five. However, despite support from Asaduddin Owaisi's AIMIM and the BSP, the Mahagathbandhan could not muster the required figure of 41.
Three Congress MLAs and one RJD MLA did not turn up to vote.
Surendra Prasad Kushwaha
He's a first-time MLA from Bihar's Valmiki Nagar. In 2015, he contested on a ticket from Upendra Kushwaha's Rashtriya Lok Samta Party (RLSP). He was defeated by independent candidate Rinku Singh.
Rinku later joined the JD(U), while Surendra Kushwaha joined the Congress. In the 2020 election, he defeated the JD(U) candidate by 1,675 votes. However, he had already been trying to move into the NDA camp.
During the Rajya Sabha election, Alok Singh, the state president of Upendra Kushwaha's new party Rashtriya Lok Morcha (RLM), had met him. Surendra Kushwaha is also a member of the Bihar assembly's petition committee.
Manoj Bishwas
Bishwas, the first-time MLA from Forbesganj, entered the house with a margin of just 221 votes. His party affiliations have shifted over the years: JD(U) block president in 2019, then RJD, and this time a Congress candidate. In the run-up to the election, he was seen as close to Purnia MP Pappu Yadav.
Manohar Prasad Singh
Manohar Prasad Singh has won the Manihari seat for a fourth time. A member of the Scheduled Tribes community, he was first elected on a JD(U) ticket. When the Mahagathbandhan was formed in 2015 and the seat fell to the Congress, he crossed over at Nitish Kumar's urging and contested on the new ticket. He has remained a Congress MLA since, though his political proximity to JD(U) leaders continued through these terms.
Faisal Rahman
He is the son of former MP Motiur Rahman, and is also a first-time MLA. He defeated the BJP's Pawan Jaiswal in Dhaka by 178 votes, a result now under challenge by Jaiswal. His father had held positions in both the RJD and the Congress. Within the current assembly, Rahman is regarded as being close to a JD(U) MP.
