Photo Credit: The Suncity News
Patna, March 26, 2024: The Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), considered the most trusted ally of the Congress in the INDIA bloc, has started declaring candidates for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections in Bihar even as the seat-sharing talks with the Congress remain unresolved.
So far, RJD has announced six candidates on its own, sidelining Congress. Party chief Lalu Prasad Yadav, who is supervising ticket distribution for the alliance in Bihar, is said to be taking a tough stand, leaving the Congress looking cornered.
“Officially, I cannot say anything. The Congress is demanding a higher number of seats but has not shared proper details of its candidates. Without discussing profiles, seat-sharing is not possible. There is no dispute, negotiations will take place soon between our national president Lalu Prasad Yadav and the Congress leadership in Delhi,” said Shivanand Tiwari, RJD national vice president.
Congress’s demand vs RJD’s resistance:
Sources said Congress is demanding 10 seats, including Purnea, Aurangabad, Buxar, Sasaram, Kishanganj, Supaul, Darbhanga, Katihar, Patna Sahib, and Begusarai. However, RJD is reluctant to concede, citing Congress’s poor performance in the 2020 Bihar assembly polls, where it lost 51 out of the 70 seats allotted to it.
Despite this standoff, RJD has already given tickets to:
Abhay Kushwaha from Aurangabad, Bima Bharti from Purnea. This has triggered fresh tensions as several Congress leaders have also staked a claim to these constituencies.
Clash over Purnea and Aurangabad:
In Purnea, Pappu Yadav, the strongman leader and four-time MP who recently merged his Jan Adhikar Party with Congress, has insisted on contesting.
“I would rather die than leave Congress and Purnea. I will contest from here at any post,” Pappu Yadav declared.
Similarly, in Aurangabad, former Kerala Governor and senior Congress leader Nikhil Kumar has sought a ticket, but RJD’s unilateral decision to field its own candidate has irked Congress cadres.
“Taking one-sided decisions is demoralizing for our party workers. RJD should respect the interests of alliance partners,” said Ashitnath Tiwari, Congress Bihar spokesperson.
With just 23 days left for the first phase of polling, the tussle over seat-sharing threatens to strain the RJS-Congress partnership in Bihar.
Also Read: RJD leader Chittranjan Gagan accused the Bihar government of showing hatred against teachers.
EOM.