All the 11 nominees, including Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi, are set to be elected to the state Legislative council in the biennial election.
Only 11 candidates have filed papers against as many vacancies in the state Upper House, Bihar Assembly Secretary Ram Shresth Rai, who is also the returning officer for the polls, told PTI.
The last date for nomination filing was today.
Though Kumar, Modi and others are set to enter the council, the ruling JD(U) and the BJP will lose two seats and one seat respectively in the current round, while the RJD can win four seats and the Congress can win one seat.
Kumar, Modi, state Health Minister Mangal Pandey and four others filed their nominations today for the the state Legislative Council polls.
Senior Bihar Congress leader Prem Chandra Mishra was the first among the seven candidates of various political parties, who filed their papers at the Assembly secretariat today.
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Rameshwar Mahto and Khalid Anwar (both from the JD-U) and former Union minister Sanjay Paswan of the BJP also filed their papers today.
Four RJD candidates -- former chief minister Rabri Devi, state party president Ramchandra Purbe, senior leaders Khurshid Mohsin and Santosh Manjhi (son of former CM Jitan Ram Manjhi) -- have already filed their papers on April 13.
A total of 11 candidates have filed papers for 11 seats, which will fall vacant next month as the terms of the sitting members will expire.
JD(U) national president Kumar, Rabri Devi, Modi and Pandey are among those whose term will expire on May 6.
The scrutiny of papers will take place on April 17, while the last date for withdrawal of nominations is April 19, Rai said.
If no other candidate, apart from those who have already filed their papers, enters the fray, the results for all the 11 seats could be declared after 3 pm on April 19, he added.
Kumar and Modi will enter the state Legislative council for the third consecutive term, while for Rabri Devi, it will be the second term in continuity.
After coming to power for the first time in 2005 heading an NDA coalition of the JD(U) and the BJP, both Kumar and Modi have been members of Bihar's Upper House.
For winning a council seat, a candidate needs 21 votes.
Of the major parties, while the RJD has 81 members in the Bihar Assembly, the JD(U) has 70 (excluding Speaker Vijay Kumar Chaudhary), the BJP 53 and the Congress 27.
Of the 11 members, whose term will expire on May 6, five belong to the JD(U), four to the BJP and one to the RJD.
Narendra Singh, who had sided with Jitan Ram Manjhi after rebelling against Kumar but returned to the JD(U) after Manjhi joined hands with Lalu Prasad, had lost his council seat under the anti-defection law.
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