Patna: As anticipation builds over the announcement of Bihar Assembly election dates, the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) has accelerated its internal consultations. Union Education Minister and BJP’s Bihar election in-charge Dharmendra Pradhan on Sunday met Janata Dal (United) leader and Union Minister Rajiv Ranjan alias Lallan Singh in Patna before holding discussions with Hindustani Awam Morcha (Secular) patron and Union Minister Jitan Ram Manjhi. Deputy Chief Minister Samrat Chaudhary and BJP’s Bihar in-charge Vinod Tawde also attended the meeting.
Earlier, on September 28, Pradhan had met Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, signalling that the alliance’s seat-sharing talks were entering a decisive phase. According to sources, the meeting with Manjhi was part of the NDA’s broader strategy to reach consensus on seat distribution. Pradhan is also expected to meet Rashtriya Lok Morcha chief Upendra Kushwaha in the coming days to finalise the formula.
Before these consultations, Pradhan chaired a two-day review of BJP’s internal election preparations. At the meeting, held at the party’s state headquarters in Patna, the performance of sitting MLAs and prospective candidates was analysed in detail. Party leaders made it clear that this election’s ticket distribution will prioritise candidates with strong public connect and electoral viability, while those facing anti-incumbency are likely to be dropped.
बिहार विधानसभा चुनाव के मद्देनजर आज पटना आवास पर हमारे साथी केंद्रीय मंत्री एवं बिहार भाजपा के प्रभारी धर्मेंद्र प्रधान जी,विनोद तावडे जी,बिहार के उपमुख्यमंत्री सम्राट चौधरी जी से मुलाकात हुई।
इस दौरान कई महत्वपूर्ण मामलों पर चर्चा हुई।@dpradhanbjp @TawdeVinod @samrat4bjp pic.twitter.com/31o07OCc36— Jitan Ram Manjhi (@jitanrmanjhi) October 5, 2025
The review was conducted in the presence of state president Dilip Jaiswal, Deputy Chief Ministers Samrat Chaudhary and Vijay Sinha, Union Ministers Giriraj Singh and Nityanand Rai, senior MP Ravi Shankar Prasad, and organisation general secretary Nagendra Nath Tripathi.
Sources said that during the meeting, a performance report was completed for around 60 seats, while discussions on the remaining constituencies will conclude soon. Based on these findings, a panel of three names will be sent to the party’s central leadership for final approval.
According to BJP insiders, the NDA will hold a joint meeting once the internal reviews are completed to finalise the seat-sharing agreement among the BJP, JD(U), HAM, and RLM. Pradhan’s visit, party sources say, is not merely a routine review but a critical exercise in alliance management as the NDA prepares to take on the opposition bloc led by the Rashtriya Janata Dal.
