Elections in Bihar: Sources say the BJP plans to modify its strategy and the choice of candidates.
New Delhi / Patna:
The BJP will review its Bihar candidates after the decision of its ally Chirag Paswan to go solo has reformulated the political calculations ahead of the October-November state elections. Sources say the party plans to modify its strategy and its choice of candidates, given the changed caste equations.
The top leaders of the BJP, including the head of Bihar, Devendra Fadnavis, and the senior deputy minister, Sushil Kumar Modi, will meet in Delhi at the home of the head of the party, JP Nadda.
Yesterday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Mr. Nadda and other senior leaders of the party’s central electoral committee held discussions on Bihar’s seats and candidates.
Chirag Paswan, leader of the Lok Janshakti Party (LJP), announced yesterday that he will not contest the polls as part of the National Democratic Alliance, stating that he has a problem with Chief Minister Nitish Kumar despite “no bitterness.” with the BJP.
Chirag Paswan, whose father Ram Vilas Paswan is a minister in Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government, said his party and the BJP would form a government after the Bihar elections. He also stated that he would present candidates opposed to Nitish Kumar’s Janata Dal United (JDU) party, but would prevent the seats from being contested by the BJP.
Many believe that Chirag Paswan’s move, which followed two meetings with the BJP leadership in Delhi, has the unspoken blessings of the BJP in its “Plan B” to keep ally Nitish Kumar in check. The fact that no BJP leader reacted or posted on the move targeting Nitish Kumar even 12 hours later has bolstered speculation. Outwardly, however, the top brass of the BJP have strongly endorsed Nitish Kumar as the leader of the NDA coalition for the polls.
Sources said Sunday in the BJP-Nitish Kumar seat pact, the JDU can contest 122 of Bihar’s 243 seats and the BJP, 121. The BJP was supposed to provide seats for the LJP on their part, but that’s debatable for now. .
The LJP, which claims to have a strong Dalit vote base, has followed a similar strategy in past elections. In 2005, the party clashed with ally RJD, preventing Lalu Yadav’s party from winning another term. The election resulted in a hung assembly and in the following elections, Nitish Kumar won enough seats to form a government.
Chirag Paswan had been preparing for the division with his frequent and unsubtle excavations at Nitish Kumar for the past few months. He openly criticized the prime minister’s handling of the coronavirus and the migration crisis. Kumar’s decision to bring former chief minister Jitan Ram Manjhi, a Dalit leader like the Paswans with a similar base of support, into the NDA worsened the dispute.
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