Pressure mounts on Congress to cede space for allies in Bihar
The Congress and the RJD were unable to arrive at a consensus during a meeting of their parties’ top brass on Tuesday over seat-sharing for the upcoming elections to the 243-member Bihar Assembly, slated to be held later this year.
According to sources, the grand-old-party may have to cede more seats from its kitty to the allies in ‘Mahagathbandan’ (grand alliance) in Bihar, owing to its dismal performance in the last Assembly poll, when it could win only 19 seats of the 70 seats that it contested.
This morning, RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav huddled for nearly one hour with Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge and LoP Rahul Gandhi to finalise a seat-sharing formula here.
The two parties are yet to reach a consensus on seat-sharing, but sources say there are clear indications that with Left parties and Vikassheel Insan Party (VIP) in the alliance, along with the recent addition of the Rashtriya Lok Janshakti Party (RLJP), the Congress’ seat share in the alliance is likely to go down. “The Congress may want 70 or more seats, but then you have to understand the chances of winning. Instead of focusing on numbers, deliberations are underway to make the Congress contest on seats, where it has better chances of winning. It has to be strike rate rather than numbers, which will ultimately make the NDA perish in the state,” said a source.
Another source said the talks about Mukesh Sahani-led VIP and Pashupati Paras-led RLJP emerged in the meeting. It was also discussed that the Congress “may have to cede more space for its allies” in the grand alliance in Bihar.
The VIP in Bihar has a strong support base in the OBC community, as it represents the extremely backward community of Nishads — a collective identity for more than 20 sub-castes, including Mallahs, who make for seven per cent of the state’s population. The RLJP banks on the legacy of Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) founder Ram Vilas Paswan.
Meanwhile, after the meeting, Tejashwi said another round of discussions would take place between the two parties in Patna on April 17.
“This government has been in place for 20 years in Bihar, with PM Modi at the helm for 11 years. Yet, Bihar remains the most economically backward state, with the lowest per capita income, lowest farmers’ income and the highest migration,” he added.
The RJD continues to project Tejashwi as the Mahagathbandhan’s CM face. However, Tejashwi didn’t give any clarity about the CM’s face. He said, “I don’t know why you all are worried about the CM face — we will decide. What’s certain is that there won’t be an NDA government in Bihar.”
India