Guwahati: The Assembly elections in Bihar will be held in two phases on November 6 and 11.
The results will be out on November 14
"The Special Intensive Revision (SIR) has sanitized the electoral rolls. All political parties and individuals were invited to file objections and claims once the draft was published. The final draft was published on September 30," said Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.
He added, "We met with all political parties and officials and through the media we would like to state that Bihar polls this time will not be able to be smooth and efficient, we will have the best polls."
Said Kumar. "A total 7.42 crore voters in Bihar, of which 3.92 crore are male and 3.5 crore women; 14 lakh first time voters."
Earlier, Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar said that voting for Bihar's 243 assembly seats will be completed by November 22, when the term of the current assembly ends, reported NDTV.
Several political parties have requested the poll body to hold the election immediately after the 'Chhath Puja' festival - which will be celebrated at the end of October - to ensure greater voter participation as a large number of people employed in other states return home for festivities.
Speaking partly in Bhojpuri Kumar said, "We congratulate the voters of India. Thank you to everyone for the successful SIR process. I appeal to all the voters of Bihar to celebrate this festival of democracy with the same enthusiasm as you celebrate Chhath. Everyone should vote and ensure their participation."
Kumar added that the number of voters at each polling station has been capped at 1,200 and that the serial number font and candidate photos - which used to be in black and white - will now be in colour.
The Chief Election Commissioner has countered the Opposition's offensive on the Special Intensive Revision in Bihar, saying revision of voter lists is required before every election, and a review after the polls won't be in accordance with the law.
