Battle lines drawn in Bihar, but rift in both camps

In around one month’s time, Bihar will have the first phase of polling. Or, to be more precise, on October 28, the first vote will be cast in the poll-bound state. Bihar will be the first state to hold Assembly elections amid Covid-19. But as battle lines were drawn after the Election Commission announced the poll schedule on Friday, both the camps – the NDA as well as Mahagatbandhan – are saddled with internal rifts.

While Upendra Kushwaha’s RLSP is planning to dump the Mahagatbandhan after questioning Tejashwi Yadav’s leadership, the NDA too is plagued with a similar problem with Chirag Paswan showing a sign of no confidence in Nitish’s leadership.

Also read — Bihar to vote between Oct 28 and Nov 7 in first Covid-19 era elections

The JD(U), which has so far been the traditional ally of the BJP since 1996, barring an intervening period of 2013-17, is more pained at the aggressive stand of its alliance partner - the Lok Janshakti Party (LJP).

The LJP has made a fresh demand that “since people in Bihar have already seen 15 years of Nitish rule and 15 years of Lalu-Rabri regime in the last three decades, so this time a new face, Chirag Paswan, the LJP president and son of Union Minister Ram Vilas Paswan, should be projected as NDA Chief Ministerial candidate.”

The statement issued by the LJP general secretary Shahnawaz Ahmed Kaifi, on the eve of EC poll schedule announcement, has exposed the chinks in the NDA armour.

1

“The LJP’s fresh stand comes after the JD(U) made it clear to the BJP that it was not interested in talking to the LJP on seat pact. The BJP, on the other hand, offered Chirag Paswan 25 seats out of 243 constituencies, an offer not acceptable to the Paswan outfit. Hence, the aggression,” a ruling party source explained it to DH on Friday.

Past Perfect

This is the first time that the JD(U) will be contesting an Assembly election in alliance with the LJP. In 2015, the Nitish outfit contested Assembly polls under Mahagatbandhan umbrella and won 71 seats, while its allies - the RJD and Congress won 80 and 27 seats, respectively. Together the Mahagatbandhan (RJD, JD(U), Congress) won 178 seats, while the BJP could scrape through in 53 constituencies, while the LJP got merely two seats.

Also read — EC announces dates for Bihar polls: Key things to know

During the 2010 elections, the NDA comprised only the JD(U) and the BJP. While the JD(U) and the BJP contested on 142 and 101 seats, respectively, it scored a landslide victory, winning 206 seats out of 243 constituencies. The JD(U) bagged 115, while the BJP won 91 seats, taking the NDA tally to a four-fifth majority in the Assembly, a record of sorts (by winning more than 80 per cent of the seats).

Notably, the 2010 and 2015 polls were held in five phases. However, the 2020 polls will be held in three phases – on October 28, November 3 and November 7. The counting of votes will take place on November 10, four days ahead of Diwali. The term of the Assembly ends on November 29.