New Delhi: The National Democratic Alliance (NDA) on Sunday finalised its seat-sharing arrangement for the forthcoming Bihar Assembly elections, with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Janata Dal (United) [JD(U)] set to contest 101 seats each in the 243-member House.
The announcement was made by Union Minister and BJP’s Bihar election in-charge Dharmendra Pradhan on social media platform X.
As per the seat-sharing formula, Union Minister Chirag Paswan-led Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) has been allotted 29 seats.
The Hindustani Awam Morcha (Secular), led by Union Minister Jitan Ram Manjhi, and Upendra Kushwaha’s Rashtriya Lok Morcha will contest six seats each.
Pradhan said that the seat-sharing exercise had been conducted in a “cordial manner” and that all NDA partners had expressed satisfaction with the outcome. “Leaders and workers of all NDA parties welcome this with happiness. Bihar is ready for another NDA government,” he said.
The finalisation of the pact follows a prolonged round of negotiations involving the BJP leadership and its smaller allies. While the JD(U) had earlier reached an understanding with the BJP, parties such as the LJP(RV), HAM(S), and RLM had engaged in tough bargaining, often expressing discontent during the discussions.
The seat distribution also reflects a shift in the balance of power within the alliance. In the 2020 Assembly elections, the JD(U) contested 115 seats and the BJP 110, with the LJP contesting independently. This is the first time that the JD(U) will contest the same number of seats as the BJP, signalling a recalibration of political weight within the ruling coalition.
Meanwhile, seat-sharing woes may continue to plague the INDI Alliance in Bihar for some more time. Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief Lalu Prasad is camping in Delhi at the moment with son and former Bihar deputy chief minister Tejashwi Yadav. They are expected to discuss the issue with the Congress in the days to come.
The RJD emerged the largest single party in the 2020 Bihar Assembly elections with 75 seats, while the Congress managed only 19. However, sources claim that the Congress believes it has a better chance in the state this time after Rahul Gandhi’s Vote Adhikar Yatra and may bargaining for more seats.
While Lalu or his wife Rabri Devi, a former chief minister of Bihar herself refused to interact with the media, Tejashwi said: “All is Well”.
A surprise element in this year’s Bihar elections will be the Jan Suraaj Party (JSP) launched by political analyst and spin doctor Prashant Kishor. On Sunday, an FIR was registered against this party for alleged violation of the model code of conduct (MCC) in Tejashwi’s Raghopur Assembly constituency a day earlier.