With Bihar's Legislative Council elections on the horizon, Union Textiles Minister Giriraj Singh stepped into campaign mode on Sunday, October 18, 2026, throwing his weight behind two BJP candidates contesting the graduate and teacher constituency seats in Darbhanga.

The two seats Giriraj is fighting for in Darbhanga

The minister expressed his support at rallies for Shri Sarvesh Kumar, the BJP candidate from the Darbhanga Graduate Constituency, and Dr. Ghanshyam Rai, the candidate from the Darbhanga Teacher Constituency. Both seats belong to Bihar's Legislative Council — the upper house of the state legislature — which periodically holds indirect elections for constituencies reserved exclusively for graduates and teachers, a constitutional provision designed to give educated professionals a direct voice in the legislature.

What Giriraj told party workers on the ground

Addressing party workers and supporters gathered at the event, Singh called for unity, trust, and dedication — 'ekjutata, vishwas aur samarpan ke saath vijay ki or' ('towards victory with solidarity, trust, and dedication') — as his closing rallying cry. He described the gathering as an opportunity to strengthen the BJP's organisational base and firm up the resolve to secure victory in the upcoming contest. A senior Union minister making the trip to Darbhanga for council seats signals just how seriously the party is treating these elections.

Why Bihar's graduate and teacher seats matter to the BJP

Bihar's Legislative Council elections for graduate and teacher constituencies are low-profile by national standards, but they carry outsized organisational significance. Winning them requires mobilising educated, often urban-leaning voter blocs — graduates registered in the constituency and recognised teachers — who do not vote in ordinary assembly elections for these seats. For the BJP, which has invested heavily in building cadre strength across Bihar since its alliance with the Janata Dal (United), a clean sweep in these seats would signal that the party's ground machinery extends well beyond traditional strongholds. Darbhanga, a major cultural and educational hub in northern Bihar, has been a contest zone in previous council election cycles.

The results of the Darbhanga Graduate and Darbhanga Teacher constituencies will serve as a barometer of BJP's organisational reach in the Mithila belt — and every vote in these small, educated electorates counts twice as much in the political optics game.