Patna (Bihar) [India], November 14 (HBTV): The Election Commission of India (ECI) on Thursday hailed the successful conduct of the Bihar Assembly Elections 2025, reporting a record voter turnout of 67.13 percent, the highest in the state since 1951. The Commission also stated that no repolls were requested in any of Bihar's 38 districts.
According to the ECI’s press note, 2,616 candidates and 12 recognized political parties participated in the two-phase elections held on November 6 and 11, and none sought repolling in any constituency. The Commission highlighted this achievement in its statement, noting that ‘zero repolls in Bihar Assembly Elections 2025; no repolls requested by 2,616 candidates; no repolls requested by 12 recognized political parties.’
The press note also stated that there were ‘zero appeals during SIR in Bihar with 7,45,26,858 electors in the final electoral roll’.
The Election Commission outlined the arrangements for the vote counting scheduled for November 14. Counting will take place in all 243 Assembly constituencies, supervised by 243 Returning Officers and 243 Counting Observers, alongside the candidates or their authorised agents. A total of 4,372 counting tables have been set up, each operated by a counting supervisor, an assistant, and a micro-observer. More than 18,000 counting agents have been deployed to monitor the process.
The Commission confirmed that counting will begin at 8:00 AM with postal ballots, followed by the counting of Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) from 8:30 AM. Postal ballot counting is to be completed before the penultimate round of EVM counting.
During EVM counting, Control Units will be brought to the tables round-wise and shown to the counting agents to verify the seals and match the serial numbers with the records in Form 17C (Part I). The number of votes recorded in the EVMs will be cross-verified with the entries in Form 17C. In case of any discrepancy, VVPAT slips from the concerned polling station will be counted.
VVPAT verification will also be conducted for a random selection of five polling stations per constituency to ensure accuracy.
The Commission advised all stakeholders and the public to rely only on the official results portal for accurate updates and not on hearsay or unofficial sources. It reiterated that results will be compiled and made available round-wise and constituency-wise by the respective Returning Officers on the official ECI results website.
The ECI further urged TV channels and online media platforms to adhere to this advisory and avoid spreading unverified information.
(ANI)