Patna: Former Union Minister Lalu Prasad’s party RJD and Congress have started a fresh tussle over the election of more than two dozen seats of Bihar Legislative Council. The Congress had strongly opposed the announcement of unilateral candidates by the RJD, which is leading the Grand Alliance of opposition parties, during the by-elections held in October last year for the two seats in the Bihar Assembly, saying that the Lok Sabha elections and the assembly elections in 2024 will be held alone. Will fight on her own, was separated from RJD.
The Grand Alliance of five parties had won 110 seats in the 2020 Bihar Assembly elections, which was less than 12 with a majority. This was largely blamed on the Congress, which contested 70 seats but could win only 19.
Chief Minister Nitish Kumar’s party JDU easily won both the seats in the by-polls, after which the round of accusations and counter-allegations between the Congress and the RJD was over. But after Lalu’s political successor, his younger son Tejashwi Yadav’s recent remarks about these seats in the Bihar Legislative Council, the tussle between the two parties started again.
When the Leader of Opposition in the Bihar Legislative Assembly, Tejashwi Yadav was asked about the elections on these seats of the Legislative Council, he said that the RJD will contest these seats on its own. When asked about the Left parties involved in the Grand Alliance, though Tejashwi said that they should be taken into confidence, when asked about the Congress, he said, “We have made it clear that we support them at the national level.” We do.”
Congress member in Bihar Legislative Council Prem Chandra Mishra took a dig, “Tejashwi Yadav is a big leader. He should tell us who he is trying to help in Bihar.” “The Congress has suffered the most because of the alliance with RJD. But it has given more importance to its ideological opposition to the BJP-led NDA than its electoral prospects. If Tejashwi Yadav is so confident, can he declare that RJD wants to fight the 2024 Lok Sabha elections on its own?
In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, NDA had won in Bihar and RJD could not win a single seat while Congress was successful in capturing one seat. Amid the turmoil in the Grand Alliance, the ruling NDA in Bihar has finalized its own seat-sharing formula but the ruling alliance is still at loggerheads.
Mukesh Sahni, the chief of Vikas Insaan Party (VIP), which is in power in Bihar and minister in the state, said, “BJP included in NDA is contesting on 12 seats and JDU is satisfied with 11 seats, LJP of Union Minister Pashupati Kumar Paras. Leaving a seat for the faction shows that they don’t think much of me.” “But I will show what the Nishad community is capable of,” said Sahni. VIPs will contest on all 24 seats.” (agency)