Prominent candidates's nominations found valid for first-phase

Nomination papers of all prominent candidates were found to be valid after scrutiny for the first phase of polling to be held on four Lok Sabha seats of Bihar on April 11.

Former CM and HAM(S) president Jitan Ram Manjhi, LJP parliamentary board chairman Chirag Paswan, RLSP Bihar chief Bhudeo Choudhary and Pappu Singh were among 47 out of the 60 candidates who submitted papers for the Aurangabad, Gaya, Nawada and Jamui seats in the first phase, Additional Chief Electoral Officer (ACEO) Sanjay Kumar Singh said here.

Nomination papers of 13 candidates, including two Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) faces -- Indradeo Das (Jamui) and Navin Kumar (Nawada) -- were rejected after the scrutiny, Singh said.

Seven nomination papers were found to be invalid in Aurangabad, five in Nawada and one in Jamui, he said.

Of the nine nomination papers filed for the Nawada assembly bypoll, eight candidates' papers were found to be valid, he added.

Bypoll to the Nawada assembly seat was necessitated following the conviction of RJD MLA Raj Ballabh Yadav in connection with a rape case.

The candidates can withdraw the nomination papers on March 27 and 28 for the four LS seats and the Nawada assembly seat.

Meanwhile, a total of 90 candidates filed their nominations for the five seats of Kishanganj, Katihar, Purnea, Banka and Bhagalpur on the last date of submission of papers for the second phase of polling to be held on April 18, Singh said.

The commission will carry out a meeting at Saharsa on Wednesday to review the poll preparedness in the five constituencies of Jhanjharpur, Supaul, Araria, Khagaria and Madhepura, which would go to polls in the third phase on April 23, Singh said.