Bihar assembly elections: NDA, INDIA bloc race to complete poll pacts

PATNA/NEW DELHI: As Bihar's governing NDA and opposition INDIA bloc engaged in hectic seat-sharing talks on Tuesday, a day after the Election Commission announced the two-phase assembly poll dates, the opposition alliance was expected to induct two more allies - Jharkhand Mukti Morcha and ex-Union minister Pashupati Kumar Paras-led Rashtriya Lok Janshakti Party - even as it tried to negotiate seats with its dissatisfied Left constituents.

NDA, likely to announce its seat-sharing arrangement on Thursday, too, was trying to iron out wrinkles with its allies, especially with Chirag Paswan's LJP (Ram Vilas).

CPI(ML) rejects offer of 19 seats from Tejashwi's RJD
The INDIA bloc, which comprises RJD, Congress, CPI, CPI(M), CPI(ML), and Mukesh Sahni's Vikassheel Insaan Party (VIP), met late Monday evening but failed to reach a consensus as CPI(ML) Liberation and CPI wanted more than the number of seats offered and sought shares based on their 2020 performances, according to highly placed sources. Discussions were scheduled to resume on Tuesday evening.

CPI(ML) rejected the offer of 19 seats - the same number it had contested in 2020 - from Tejashwi Yadav's RJD as against their demand for between 40 and 45 seats. With the senior leadership seeing this proposal from RJD as neither "dignified" nor "respectable", it proposed on Tuesday a nearly 25% climbdown to convey to RJD a list of around 30 seats which, sources said, would be "non-negotiable".

State CPI(ML) secretary Kunal said, "There is no discontent among us. We want 40 seats but are flexible with our demand."The "ball is now in Tejaswi's court" and "all options are open" is what a CPI(ML) source said when asked what would be the course of action if RJD did not agree.

Last time, the Left party had won 12 out of 19 seats in the assembly polls and 2 of the 3 seats it fought in the 2024 LS polls as part of "Mahagathbandhan". It currently holds 11 seats in the assembly after losing one in a 2024 byelection.

CPI also sought "a reasonable number" of seats. General secretary D Raja said, "We will talk to Tejashwi Yadav on Tuesday itself," expressing confidence in the opposition alliance's chances. VIP chief Mukesh Sahani confirmed his party expects a "good number of seats" and that they would announce candidate names after careful analysis. Rejecting claims of internal discord, he added, "Nothing has improved on the migration front in the past 20 years. People are forced to leave Bihar in search of petty jobs and face humiliation. I, too, suffered humiliation."

Meanwhile, NDA continued to finalise its seat-sharing arrangements. JDU national executive president Sanjay Kumar Jha said discussions with CM Nitish Kumar on party seats and candidates were proceeding smoothly.

Select The Times of India as your preferred source on Google Search