PATNA: Bihar Opposition leader Tejashwi Prasad Yadav seems to have landed in trouble after a second EPIC (election photo identity card) issued in his name came to light on Saturday.
Election Commission of India (ECI) is said to have ordered an investigation to ascertain if second EPIC issued to Tejashwi was forged. The poll body said that ‘second EPIC’ was not made through official channels.
EPIC is issued by ECI to eligible voters, and serves as identity proof.
On Saturday, Tejashwi told the media that when he searched for his details using EPIC number RAB2916120 on the Election Commission’s portal, his name did not appear. “How can I contest elections when my name is missing from the electoral rolls,” he asked.
On the other hand, Patna district magistrate Dr. Thiyagarajan SM, dismissed the allegation and clarified that the Leader of the Opposition’s EPIC number is RAB0456228.
The same EPIC number was mentioned by him (Tejashwi) in the affidavit submitted during the Bihar Assembly Elections, 2020, where it can be seen at serial number 511. The DM maintained that the correct EPIC number is RAB0456228. The district administration also claimed that the same EPIC number (RAB0456228) was mentioned in electoral rolls in 2015.
“The same EPIC number exists in draft electoral rolls released by ECI on Friday (August 1,2025),” official sources said.
DM Thiyagarajan said, “Currently, leader of Opposition, Tejashwi Prasad Yadav’s name is listed at polling station number 204, the library building of Bihar Animal Sciences University, with serial number 416. Previously, his name was recorded at the library building of Bihar Animal Sciences University, polling station number 171, with serial number 481.”
Official sources said that EPIC number RAB292916120 has been found non-existent after verification of records.