Tejashwi Yadav and VIP's Mukesh Sahani
Credit: PTI File Photo
New Delhi: The I.N.D.I.A. bloc expects that the Congress shedding its reluctance to name Tejashwi Yadav as Chief Ministerial face and RJD overcoming its suspicion of VIP to accept Mukesh Sahani as a Deputy Chief Minister to bring the alliance back on track in the campaign for Bihar polls.
It believes the display of unity with a message to castes and communities that there will be more Deputy Chief Ministers as well as stitching a new coalition with the entry of new parties like India Inclusive Party will help them bridge the 2020’s narrow vote gap of around 12,700 votes against NDA.
The bloc also hopes to overcome the acrimony and anger accumulated among allies over seat sharing negotiations in the past fortnight with the announcement at the first joint press conference following the release of the Extremely Backward Classes (EBCs) agenda on September 24.
The anointment of Mukesh Sahni, who belongs to the Nishad community, also symbolizes the emergence of the EBCs in Bihar politics, who hold the balance of power between Lalu Yadav's Muslim-Yadav combine against the BJP-JD(U) alliance backed by the Kurmi-upper caste combination. It is also a manifestation of the most backward communities, who have lagged behind the dominant OBC castes, seeking not just proportional or fair representation but leadership positions in the power structure.
Nishad, Kevat, Mallah, and Bind are part of the same caste groups in the EBC category that are associated with river and water bodies-based occupation in the Indo-Gangetic plains.
The joint appearance of alliance leaders for the first time after the election schedule was announced came amid unresolved differences leading to ‘friendly fights’ in some ten seats. Leaders sidestepped the questions saying 1-2% such contests are normal and coming days could see some concessions.
The run up to the announcement followed senior Congress negotiator Ashok Gehlot doing the fire-fighting with the RJD leadership, where the grand old party shed its reluctance to officially name the “obvious choice” for CM face and sending a message to its cadre to let the bygones be bygones.
The announcement on Tejashwi was delayed as Congress played the hardball with even Rahul Gandhi refusing to publicly acknowledge the RJD scion as the CM face even after the latter made a vociferous endorsement of the Congress leader being the most suited to become the Prime Minister.
Gehlot downplayed questions of one-upmanship saying that the Congress was never in “no doubt” about the CM face and instead focussed on why NDA is not naming a CM face.
Along with the CM face, the I.N.D.I.A. bloc also chose Sahani as a Deputy CM face with an eye on ensuring the support of the Nishad community, one of the biggest EBC groups numbering around 4.3% of Bihar population. RJD had been suspicious of Sahani, who had walked out from the alliance in 2020, and its turn around to support Sahani came as it wanted to bring as many communities as possible in its poll stable.
Incidentally, VIP, which had asked for 60 seats but settled for 15, was on the verge of walking out of the alliance but for the intervention of Rahul on the prodding of CPI(ML)L General Secretary Dipankar Bhattacharya. Sahani also wanted to be the lone Deputy CM face but the alliance has not fallen for it.
The press conference also shed some light on the line of attack on the NDA with Tejashwi, who claimed he had a “vision with undying passion for taking Bihar forward, launching a scathing attack on JD(U)’s political future and Nitish’s place in it. Tejashwi claims that the BJP is scripting JD(U)’s demise.
The I.N.D.I.A bloc acknowledges the hold Nitish, who was one of the architects of the Opposition alliance before he changed sides, has over his loyal voter base and are trying to cash in on the “insult” heaped on him by the BJP. It wants to break Nitish’s core voter base, including EBCs and women.
Its focus on women was also evident with Tejashwi highlighting announcements on permanent jobs with Rs 30,000 salary for Jeevika Didis and community workers to offset impact of the transfer of Rs 10,000 to women, which the RJD leader has described as an election “bribe”.