Amid controversy over the deletion of Muslim voters in the Bihar Socio-Economic and Caste Survey, the Muslim candidates fielded by all the major regional political parties have come down to significantly lower proportions compared to the last election, marking the lowest representation in relation to the Muslim community's population in the state, while the community’s representation in the Bihar Assembly from 1990 to 2020 averaged around 8 per cent.
Since 1990, the proportion of Muslim MLAs in the state Assembly has fluctuated from a low of 5.55 per cent in 1990 to a high of 9.87 per cent in the 2005 (February) and 2015 elections, whereas the community constitutes 17.7 per cent of Bihar’s 13.07 crore population according to the 2022-23 state caste survey, according to The Indian Express.
In the 2020 Assembly elections, 19 Muslim candidates were elected, representing 7.81 per cent of the 243-member House, with the RJD contributing eight MLAs, AIMIM five, Congress four, and one each from the BSP and CPI(ML) Liberation. The JD(U) fielded 11 Muslim candidates, but none were successful.
By contrast, the 2015 Assembly saw the election of 24 Muslim MLAs, accounting for 9.87 per cent, including 12 from the RJD, six from Congress, five from the JD(U), and one from CPI(ML) Liberation, marking one of the community’s highest levels of representation in recent decades. Earlier, in 2010, 19 Muslim legislators were elected, comprising seven from JD(U), six from RJD, three from Congress, two from the LJP, and one from the BJP.
The pattern of Muslim representation has been closely tied to party alliances and candidate distribution. In the February 2005 polls, 24 Muslim MLAs were elected, whereas the October-November elections of the same year saw a sharp decline to 16, reflecting changes in party nominations and political realignments. The 2000 Assembly in undivided Bihar had 30 Muslim MLAs, largely from the RJD, while the 1995 House comprised 23 Muslim representatives, predominantly from the Janata Dal.
Ahead of the two-phase Bihar Assembly elections on 6 and 11 November 2025, major parties have reduced the number of Muslim candidates. The RJD has nominated 18 Muslims among 143 candidates, unchanged from 2020, while Congress has fielded 10, down from 12 previously.
The CPI(ML) Liberation has included two Muslim nominees, the VIP has given none, and the JD(U) has reduced its Muslim representation to four among 101 candidates. The LJP (Ram Vilas) has fielded a single Muslim candidate, whereas AIMIM has put forward 23 Muslims out of 25 nominees, signalling a concentrated attempt to build community leadership in Bihar.