NDA seat sharing: Before the Bihar Assembly elections, the tussle regarding seat sharing in NDA is at its peak. The biggest challenge is to woo Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) President Chirag Paswan, who is adamant on holding the seats under his party’s influence. Chirag, who once demanded forty seats, has now reduced his list to 35 seats, but the matter still does not seem to be resolved.
Demand for Chirag reduced, but demand for seats remains intact.
According to reports, Chirag Paswan has now submitted a list of 35 assembly seats to the BJP, while the BJP has offered only 26 seats to its ally. Along with this, BJP has also assured to give one Legislative Council (MLC) and one Rajya Sabha seat in future.
Chirag Paswan mainly wants at least two assembly seats each in those five Lok Sabha constituencies where his party has deep influence. These areas are Hajipur, Jamui, Vaishali, Khagaria and Samastipur. Chirag’s entire emphasis is on those seats where his party has a strong hold and the chances of victory are high.
Chirag’s eyes on the seats held by NDA
The main reason for the deadlock in seat sharing is that Chirag Paswan has demanded some seats which are currently in the possession of BJP, Janata Dal (United) and Hindustani Awam Morcha (Secular).
For example, there is a dilemma on seats like Govindganj, Matihani and Sikandra. LJP (Ram Vilas) wants to make its state president Raju Tiwari the candidate from Govindganj seat, on which BJP does not agree. At the same time, Chirag has demanded to field Hulas Pandey from Bhrampur seat, while BJP wants its leader Santosh Rai to contest from there.
A senior leader of LJP (Ram Vilas) clarified that he has definitely reduced the demand, but he has to contest elections only on those seats where his victory is certain. He cited the Matihani seat, which his party had won in 2020, but the MLA later joined JDU. LJP now wants that seat back. The list of major seats of Chirag includes seats like Mehnar, Mahua, Murwa, Alauli, Bhagalpur Sadar, Bakhtiyarpur, Fatuha, Atri, Obra, Sheikhpura, Arwal and Jehanabad.
equation of other partners
According to sources, in seat sharing, both BJP and JDU can contest on at least 100 seats each. At the same time, Upendra Kushwaha’s Rashtriya Lok Morcha (RLM) may have to compromise on less than 10 seats. On the other hand, Hindustani Awam Morcha (Secular) patron and Union Minister Jitan Ram Manjhi is also adamant on his demand. Manjhi is demanding 15 seats for his party and he has directly said that if his demand is not met then he will not contest the elections this time.
Every ally within the NDA wants maximum seats based on its influence and probability of victory. Chirag Paswan’s demand for 35 seats and Manjhi’s ultimatum have made the path of seat sharing even more difficult for the NDA.
