A growing sense of apprehension is sweeping through the Congress party’s unit in Bihar. As seat-sharing discussions within the opposition’s grand alliance, or Mahagathbandhan, continue to face frustrating delays, several Congress leaders openly expressed their “restiveness and unnerved” feelings on October 11, 2025. They argued strongly that the party should consider breaking away from the political dominance of the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) in Bihar and contest the upcoming Assembly elections independently.
The Mahagathbandhan is expected to finalize its seat distribution among alliance partners on October 12, 2025. Tejashwi Yadav, the prominent leader of the RJD, was scheduled to travel to New Delhi on the evening of October 11, 2025, for a final round of discussions with Congress leaders before the official announcement of candidate lists.
Adding another layer of complexity, Tej Pratap Yadav, Tejashwi Yadav’s elder brother, who has since formed his own political party, the Janshakti Janata Dal, declared on October 11, 2025, that his party would release its candidate list by October 13. He also confirmed his intention to contest from the Mahua Assembly constituency in Vaishali district, moving from his current Hasanpur constituency in Samastipur district.
Kishore Kumar Jha, a senior Congress leader from Bihar and former AICC member, articulated the party’s growing impatience. “We implore our party leadership to seriously consider contesting the upcoming Assembly election in Bihar independently if the RJD continues to delay in offering us a respectable number of seats,” he stated, adding, “The Congress has nothing to lose. It appears the RJD has deliberately prolonged these discussions to politically weaken our party in the state.”
Jha, hailing from Madhubani district, further emphasized, “The RJD leadership must acknowledge the revitalized strength of the Congress party under Rahul Gandhi’s leadership. There’s a newfound political momentum following his recent 14-day Voters’ Adhikar Yatra, which covered 1,300 km across more than 24 districts in the state.”
Another former Congress MLA, expressing frustration, questioned the endless waiting. “How much longer must we wait and convene countless meetings, essentially begging for more seats to contest? This situation calls for a decisive move. We should contest the elections alone to demonstrate our renewed political strength to our primary alliance partner, the RJD,” he asserted.
In the 2020 Assembly elections, the Congress contested 70 seats but managed to secure only 19, a disappointing strike rate compared to other alliance members. Current political speculation suggests that the Congress aims to contest 65-68 seats in the upcoming polls. However, the RJD is reportedly reluctant to allocate more than 54-56 seats, citing the need to accommodate other partners such as the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) and Pashupati Kumar Paras-led Rashtriya Lok Janshakti Party.
Sources within the RJD, speaking anonymously, indicated that the most significant obstacle to finalizing the Mahagathbandhan’s candidate list is the demand from Mukesh Sahani-led Vikassheel Insaan Party (VIP) for 40 seats and the Deputy Chief Minister’s position. “Every ally within the Mahagathbandhan must make sacrifices to accommodate our junior partners, and we are optimistic that this will be resolved by tomorrow,” a senior RJD leader commented.
The former Congress MLA reiterated, “As the leading partner, the RJD bears the responsibility to spearhead and finalize a mutually agreeable candidate list among all allies. However, this prolonged delay is causing considerable anxiety, especially with the election dates fast approaching and very little time left for prospective candidates to kickstart their campaigns.”
Another Congress leader confidently remarked, “The final candidate lists for all parties will be announced within the next 24 hours. Almost everything has been finalized, with only minor issues over a few seats remaining, which will be amicably settled in the coming hours.” He also predicted that the party’s electoral performance in Bihar this time would astonish many political experts.