The meeting took place a day ahead of the BJP Central Election Committee (CEC) meeting, attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other senior leaders, to finalise the list of BJP candidates for the two-phase Bihar polls scheduled for November 6 and 11.
NEW DELHI: Union home minister Amit Shah and BJP president J.P. Nadda held a meeting with party leaders and allies on the upcoming Bihar Assembly elections on Saturday. BJP state unit president Dilip Jaiswal indicated that the seat sharing arrangement among the NDA partners will be announced by Sunday.
The meeting took place a day ahead of the BJP Central Election Committee (CEC) meeting, attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other senior leaders, to finalise the list of BJP candidates for the two-phase Bihar polls scheduled for November 6 and 11.
Sources said the seat sharing formula between the Janata Dal (United) and the Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) has been nearly finalised, while discussions were still underway with Hindustan Awam Morcha (Secular) chief and Union minister Jitan Ram Manjhi and Rashtriya Lok Morcha (RLM) leader Upendra Kushwaha.
According to sources within the NDA, the JD(U) is likely to contest 101 or 102 seats, with the BJP getting one seat fewer.
BJP Bihar president Dilip Jaiswal said, “All is well in the NDA. The seat sharing details of the allies will be announced today or by tomorrow at 11 am. Everything has been decided, and the NDA is moving forward with firm unity.”
When asked where the announcement would be made, in Patna or Delhi, Jaiswal said the NDA leadership would take a call on that.
BJP in-charge for Bihar affairs Vinod Tawde and Bihar election in-charge Dharmendra Pradhan, who is also a Union minister, attended the meeting.
Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary, who was also present for the BJP core group meeting, said discussions on seat sharing with allies were continuing. “Nobody has any resentment. Everyone expressed their views freely and all are satisfied,” he told reporters, when asked about possible dissatisfaction from Upendra Kushwaha or Chirag Paswan.
During the day long meeting at Nadda’s residence, Jitan Ram Manjhi also met senior BJP leaders to discuss seat-sharing. “We have expressed our views before the senior BJP leadership. In politics, no one is a permanent friend or foe,” said Rajesh Pandey, national general secretary of HAM (S).
Meanwhile, the central parliamentary board of the LJP (Ram Vilas), at a meeting held at Chirag Paswan’s residence, authorised the party chief to take all decisions regarding the elections.
