The Patna Graduates constituency has emerged as a key battleground amid an open rift within the JD(U), with Mokama MLA Anant Singh backing Jan Suraaj Party candidate Anuj Singh against his own party's nominee, Neeraj Kumar. The electorate includes 1,46,611 women and 37 third-gender voters, with polling being held at 933 stations. (Representative image)Patna,Oct 23, 2026 11:15 ISTPolling for biennial elections to eight Bihar Legislative Council seats began at 8 am on Friday amid tight security, with 5,32,847 voters eligible to decide the fate of 150 candidates, officials said.Voting will continue until 4 pm across four Graduates and four Teachers constituencies.

The electorate includes 1,46,611 women and 37 third-gender voters, with polling being held at 933 stations. Counting of votes is scheduled for October 27.The Patna Graduates constituency has emerged as a key battleground amid an open rift within the JD(U), with Mokama MLA Anant Singh backing Jan Suraaj Party candidate Anuj Singh against his own party’s nominee, Neeraj Kumar.Kumar, a former minister and close aide of former chief minister Nitish Kumar, is seeking a fourth consecutive term from the seat.

Anant Singh has thrown his support behind Anuj Singh, alleging that Neeraj Kumar worked against him during last year’s Assembly elections. Besides Patna Graduates, polling is being held in Darbhanga Graduates, Tirhut Graduates, Kosi Graduates, Patna Teachers, Darbhanga Teachers, Tirhut Teachers and Saran Teachers.

The terms of the sitting MLCs are due to end on November 16.The BJP has fielded candidates in four constituencies, including three sitting MLCs seeking re-election, while the JD(U) has nominated candidates for the remaining four seats. The BJP’s sitting MLCs Nawal Kishor Yadav, NK Yadav and Sarvesh Kumar are seeking re-election from Patna Teachers, Kosi Graduates and Tirhut Graduates, respectively.

The party has also fielded Narendra Kumar Singh from Tirhut Teachers, a seat currently held by Sanjay Kumar Singh of the CPI, which is part of the opposition INDIA bloc.The Jan Suraaj Party (JSP), led by Prashant Kishor, is contesting all eight seats. It revised its candidate list after the initial announcement, replacing Bhushan Jha with Shyam Nandan Yadav in Tirhut Teachers and Ravindra Yadav with Mohammad Imtiyaz (Noorani) in Darbhanga Graduates.- Ends