The Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) on Monday, 26 October 2026 submitted a formal memorandum to Bihar's Chief Electoral Officer Vinod Singh Gunjial in Patna, demanding strict transparency measures during the counting of votes for four graduate and four teachers' constituencies of the Bihar Legislative Council. The party raised concerns about possible vote theft and sought action on 10 specific points to prevent electoral irregularities.

Key Demands by the RJD

The delegation, led by MLA Bhai Virendra, called for a ban on violet pens and similar writing instruments inside counting centres. It also demanded a prohibition on adding marks — such as ticks, crosses, or lines — to ballot papers, and sought uniform criteria for determining valid and invalid votes across all counting tables.

The party urged officials to examine suspicious ballot papers before counting first-preference votes, and called for authorised agents to be allowed to raise objections at any point. Continuous monitoring through CCTV cameras and videography was also demanded, along with a requirement that results be declared only after reconciling valid and invalid ballot papers and verifying result sheets.

The Chandigarh Mayoral Election Reference

The memorandum explicitly cited the 2024 Chandigarh mayoral election — a case that drew national attention after allegations of ballot tampering — as a cautionary example. The RJD stressed the need to preserve ballot papers in their original condition and ensure impartial decisions on vote validity, drawing a direct parallel to that controversy.

Copies of the memorandum were sent to the Election Commission of India (ECI) and the commissioners of the respective divisions, signalling the party's intent to escalate if its concerns are not addressed.

Allegations Against Counting Officials

Dr Sanjeev Kumar Singh, the RJD candidate for the Patna Teachers' constituency, alleged that some officials had previously faced questions over their conduct and that cases related to irregularities had been registered against them. He demanded that officials facing such allegations should not be assigned counting duties, raising concerns about institutional impartiality.

Electoral Officer's Assurance and Party's Confidence

Speaking to the media after the meeting, Bhai Virendra said the Chief Electoral Officer had assured the delegation that the counting process would be transparent and conducted in accordance with the Commission's guidelines. However, he noted that the party's concerns about possible vote theft persisted.

Virendra expressed confidence that the RJD would win all eight seats. The delegation also included former MLA Rajendra Kumar Ram, Ranvijay Sahu, Dr Anwar Alam, and Mukund Singh.

With counting under close watch, the outcome of these Bihar Legislative Council constituencies will serve as an early indicator of the opposition's organisational strength ahead of upcoming state-level contests.