Patna: After weeks of internal disputes, the Grand Alliance has resolved its seat-sharing conflict ahead of the Bihar Assembly elections. Former Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot, sent by the Congress high command, met RJD supremo Lalu Yadav and his son Tejashwi Yadav in Patna on Wednesday. Following discussions, a joint press conference of the alliance has been scheduled for Thursday at Hotel Maurya, where a formal announcement of Tejashwi Yadav as the alliance’s Chief Ministerial face is expected. Posters and boards featuring Tejashwi’s photograph have already been put up at the venue.
Assembly Election Nominations
Candidates for the second phase of the assembly elections will be able to withdraw their nominations on Thursday. In this phase, 1,761 candidates filed nominations in 2,681 sets for 122 seats. Scrutiny conducted late Tuesday night led to the rejection of 578 nominations, while 2,103 nominations were accepted. Election symbols will now be allotted to candidates from unrecognized parties and independents who have not yet received them, according to the Election Department.
BJP Criticism of Grand Alliance
Bihar BJP President Dilip Jaiswal dismissed talks of reconciliation within the Grand Alliance, saying, “When Tejashwi Yadav went to Delhi to meet Rahul Gandhi and the way he was treated, it is clear there can never be a friendship between RJD and Congress. Congress does not want RJD to move beyond that.”
PM Modi and Amit Shah Campaign Schedule
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will address 12 public meetings in six days as part of the election campaign. He will hold rallies in Samastipur and Begusarai on October 24, followed by Muzaffarpur and Chapra on October 30, and additional rallies on November 2, 3, 6, and 7.
Home Minister Amit Shah is expected to arrive in Bihar on October 23 and will address rallies in Siwan and Buxar on October 24, followed by Nalanda, Munger, and Khagaria on October 25. Seventeen teams have been formed to coordinate these election meetings.
Congress’s Electoral Challenges
Out of the 61 seats won by Congress in previous elections, 40 are considered risky. The alliance has suffered consecutive defeats in 17 seats over the last three elections and lost 23 seats in two elections since 2010. There are 28 seats where neither Congress nor RJD won in the last three elections, with Congress considered weak in most of these constituencies.
The 17 seats where the Grand Alliance has not won in three consecutive elections include: Valmikinagar, Bagaha, Nautan, Chanpatia, Raxaul, Govindganj, Bathnaha, Forbesganj, Banmankhi, Purnia, Gopalganj, Lakhisarai, Bihar Sharif, Jale, Kumhrar, Patna Sahib, and Gaya Town.
Candidate Composition and Strategy
The alliance has focused on consolidating its traditional Muslim-Yadav (MY) vote bank, while also targeting upper-caste and Koeri votes. Among its 243 candidates, the RJD-led alliance has fielded:
- 66 Yadav and 30 Muslim candidates
- 28 Koeri candidates, aiming to challenge the NDA’s Luv-Kush equation
- 15 Bhumihar, 11 Rajput, 10 Brahmin, and 1 Kayastha candidates
- 38 Dalit and 2 Adivasi (Scheduled Tribe) candidates
- 17 Vaishya and 30 Extremely Backward Class candidates
This distribution reflects the alliance’s strategy to balance caste representation while consolidating its key vote banks ahead of the elections.
