Top leaders from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) have arrived in Delhi for an important core committee meeting scheduled for Saturday. The discussions will focus on finalizing candidates and strategizing for the upcoming two-phase Bihar Assembly elections, which are set to take place on November 6 and 11. The vote count is scheduled for November 14.
Dispelling any rumors about potential rifts within the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) over seat-sharing, Bihar BJP President Dilip Jaiswal asserted that the alliance is united and poised for a strong victory in the Bihar Assembly elections.
“All discussions regarding the NDA alliance have been completed. Only the formal announcement remains. We believe it will be announced by tomorrow evening. The central leadership will be the one to make the announcement,” Jaiswal told ANI on Friday. He further added, “Many people speculate. But when the NDA workers’ conference was underway in the 243 assembly constituencies, I said that the NDA was moving forward with rock-solid unity and would form the government with a huge majority in the upcoming elections. Those who used to have such discussions have now calmed down.”
Union Minister Jitan Ram Manjhi also addressed seat-sharing speculations, clarifying that he had made requests rather than expressing discontent. “I was not miffed. I only had requests. We have to ensure that the NDA wins… The double-engine government is required for the public interest. We want to see Nitish Kumar as the CM again… I am going to the parliamentary meeting. I will inform you tomorrow about what happened (during the meeting),” Manjhi stated.
Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Vijay Kumar Sinha highlighted that the upcoming NDA meeting aims to ensure a better government, promote good governance, and eliminate dishonest politics. “…This meeting (of NDA) is for a better government, good governance and liberty from the politics of fraud…Everything will be clear when the seat-sharing will be announced tomorrow,” Sinha commented.
Echoing the sentiment of unity, BJP MP Pradeep Kumar Singh shared, “Seat-sharing talks within the NDA are going well. The NDA is completely intact, and there are no problems anywhere. No one is angry. NDA is united. We will fight with full strength, and this time we will cross 225 seats.” Bihar Minister Mangal Pandey also affirmed, “… The NDA is united. We will fight the elections with complete unity and will win.”
The upcoming elections will witness a contest primarily between the NDA, led by the BJP, and the INDIA bloc, headed by Tejashwi Yadav of the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD). The INDIA bloc comprises the Congress party, the Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) (CPI-ML), the Communist Party of India (CPI), the Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPM), and Mukesh Sahani’s Vikasheel Insaan Party (VIP). Additionally, Prashant Kishor’s Jan Suraaj has also declared its intention to contest all 243 seats.