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• The current Assembly is scheduled to end on November 29
• SC today refused to entertain a plea seeking to postpone the upcoming Bihar Assembly elections in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Election Commission of India (ECI) on Friday announced the schedule for Bihar Assembly polls 2020. Voting for Bihar assembly elections will be held in three phases — first on October 28, second on November 3 and the third on November 7 — while counting of all votes will take place on November 10, the Election Commission announced on Friday.

This is the schedule for Bihar Elections 2020:

Bihar elections will be conducted in three phases.

In the first phase, 71 seats will be covered. Polls -28th October.

Date of issue of gazette notification: Oct 1

Last date of nomination: Oct 8

Scrutiny of nomination: Oct 9

Last date of withdrawal of candidature: Oct 12

Date of polling: Oct 28

In the second phase, 94 seats will be covered. Polls – 3rd November.

Date of issue of gazette notification: Oct 9

Last date of nomination: Oct 16

Scrutiny of nomination: Oct 17

Last date of withdrawal of candidature: Oct 19

Date of polling: Nov 3

In the third phase, 78 seats will be covered. Polls- 7th November.

Date of issue of gazette notification: Oct 13

Last date of nomination: Oct 20

Scrutiny of nomination: Oct 21

Last date of withdrawal of candidature: Oct 23

Date of polling: Nov 7

The results will be declared on 10th November.

Bihar Assembly Elections Dates: Here are the highlights

• “Elections entail large scale deployment of security forces. We have tried to minimise their movement over long distance,” says CEC Arora. This is due to their fatigue as well as Covid-19, he added. “We have reduced the number of phases due to this,” says Arora.
• No of people accompanying a candidate for submission of nomination restricted to 2. No of vehicle restricted to 2. Door to door campaign restricted to five including the candidate.
• Bihar will have 42,000 polling stations.
• Model code of conduct has come into immediate force with the announcement, says CEC.
• Social media platforms should make adequate arrangements to prevent misuse of their platform, says CEC.
• All elections meetings will be monitored by election and health officials. Public gatherings can take place following social distancing norms. The District Election Officers will decide on the number of people allowed in such gatherings.
• District election officers to identify grounds for physical campaigning and also ensure circles are marked on the ground to ensure social distancing, says Sunil Arora
• Apart from postal facility, those with Covid-19 who are quarantined can vote in the last hour of voting. Polling time has been increased by one hour, and will not be held from 7 am to 6 pm.
• Number of voters per polling station cut to 1,000 to facilitate social distancing, says CEC.
• “The world has changed, certainly not for the better since Delhi elections, said Sunil Arora, Chief Election Commissioner of India.
• The total electors in Bihar in 2015 was 67 million. The number has increased to 72 million, says CEC Sunil Arora.
• This is the biggest election in the world amid Covid-19.
• Postal ballots has been extended to people above the age of 80 years. Wherever required and asked for, the facility will be extended. Further, voters with disabilities, and who are suffering with Covid-19, will be taken care of, says CEC Sunil Arora.
• “The term of Assembly in Bihar is expiring on November 29. Bihar Assembly holds a strength of 243 members of which 38 seats are reserved for SCs and two for STs,” CEC Sunil Arora said.
• Over 7 lakh hand sanitiser units, about 46 lakh masks, 6 lakh PPE kits, 6.7 lakh units of faces-shields, 23 lakh (pairs of) hand gloves arranged, says Sunil Arora

The Supreme Court today refused to entertain a plea seeking to postpone the upcoming Bihar Assembly elections in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.

A team consisting of ECI members had visited the State earlier this month to review poll preparedness and take stock of the situation.