PATNA, June 9 -- In a display of political choreography typical of Bihar's alliance-driven landscape, 10 candidates, including nine from the ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA) and one from the Opposition Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), filed their nomination papers on Monday for the biennial elections to the state legislative council from the assembly quota. Panchayati raj minister and son of Rashtriya Lok Morcha chief Upendra Kushwaha, Deepak Prakash, was not given chance by the NDA to enter the legislature, aggravating speculations that his exit from the cabinet is all but certain unless a "formula" is worked out in the alliance. The nomination proceedings at the Vidhan Sabha secretariat drew considerable attention, not least because of the presence of Bhojpuri cinema superstar Pawan Singh and Nishant Kumar, the son of veteran leader and former chief minister Nitish Kumar. Both men filed their papers in the presence of chief minister Samrat Choudhary, Union minister Rajiv Ranjan alias Lalan Singh, Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) president Chirag Paswan, and deputy chief minister Vijay Kumar Chaudhary. A large crowd gathered outside the assembly premises, eager to catch a glimpse of Singh, whose entry into the upper house has been keenly watched. Among other notable candidates, the BJP fielded Sanjay Prakash Mayukh, its national media co-incharge and a two-time MLC seeking a third term, along with Anil Kumar Thakur and Sheela Pandit, both grassroots workers from the extremely backward classes (EBC) - a segment the party has been actively courting. The Janata Dal (United) nominated Nishant Kumar, Bharti Mehta (an EBC leader and party spokesperson), Shivrani Devi Prajapati (an OBC and former state general secretary), and Lalan Prasad, who is contesting the by-election to the seat vacated by Nitish Kumar after his election to the Rajya Sabha. The LJP(RV) put up Ashraf Ansari, a close aide of the late Ram Vilas Paswan. Party leaders, including Chirag Paswan's brother-in-law Arun Bharti, recalled Paswan's long-standing commitment to minority representation, referencing his past calls for a Muslim chief minister in Bihar and his principled stand during the 2002 Gujarat riots. The lone RJD candidate, sitting MLC Sunil Kumar Singh, secured a third consecutive term nomination from the opposition. With exactly 10 candidates for 10 seats - nine biennial and one by-election - and no extra contenders in the fray, all nominees are set to be declared elected unopposed on June 11, the last date for withdrawal of papers. Voting, if needed, was scheduled for June 18. A senior assembly secretariat official confirmed that formalities on the withdrawal date would suffice to seal their victory. The outcome was never in doubt given the strength of the respective alliances in the assembly. The NDA commands 201 votes, comfortably ensuring victory for its eight candidates, while the Mahagathbandhan's 36 votes secure the lone RJD seat. The NDA's dominance also guarantees its win in the bypoll. The absence of panchayati raj minister Deepak Prakash from the list of nominees was prominent, even though it was widely speculated. Sworn in on May 7, Prakash, who is not currently a member of either house of the legislature, needs to enter the assembly or council by November 7 (according to an RLM leader) to retain his ministerial berth. Sources indicated the delay stemmed from lack of clearance from the BJP high command. When asked about him not getting the MLC nomination, his father, Upendra Kushwaha, who is in New Delhi presumably to discuss the case of his son with senior BJP leaders, told reporters that only the NDA leaders could tell why he (Prakash) is not in the list of nominees. While Alok Singh, Bihar chief of RLM, said that the party's top leadership will decide over the issue. Meanwhile, a writ petition has been filed in the Supreme Court challenging the re-appointment of Deepak Prakash as Bihar's panchayati raj minister. The plea states that Prakash is not a member of either house of the state legislature and therefore can't take any post in the State Government's ministry. The petition has sought directions calling upon Prakash to explain the legal and constitutional basis on which he continues to hold the office of Bihar's panchayati raj minister. It has also sought a declaration that his reappointment on May 7 and his continuance in office are unconstitutional, illegal and contrary to Article 164(4) of the Constitution. Article 164(4) permits a non-legislator to be appointed as a minister only as a temporary exception and requires such a person to secure membership of the State Legislature within six consecutive months. Failing this, the minister must cease to hold office. According to the petition, Prakash, who is a leader of the Rashtriya Lok Morcha (RLM), was first sworn in as Panchayati Raj Minister on November 20, 2025, in the Nitish Kumar-led government despite not being an elected member of either the Bihar Legislative Assembly (Vidhan Sabha) or the Bihar Legislative Council (Vidhan Parishad). The petition states that the six-month constitutional clock under Article 164(4) began running from that date and was set to expire around May 19, 2026. The political situation, however, changed in April 2026 when Nitish Kumar resigned and the council of ministers stood dissolved. Samrat Choudhary was subsequently sworn in as Chief Minister on April 15, 2026. During a 22-day interregnum, Prakash held no ministerial office. The challenge, therefore, arises from Prakash's reappointment as panchayati raj Minister on May 7, 2026, in the newly-expanded Choudhary Cabinet, even though he has not secured election to either House of the Bihar Legislature. According to the petition, the government cannot bypass the constitutional limit by breaking up a minister's tenure and reappointing the same person after a brief gap. Such an exercise amounts to a colourable exercise of constitutional power designed to achieve indirectly what cannot be done directly, the plea states....