Amid the ongoing tussle over seat sharing between the constituent parties of the NDA and the Grand Alliance in the Bihar Assembly elections, candidates from both alliances have started filing their nominations. In the NDA, the JDU, and in the Grand Alliance, the Congress are reluctant to leave several seats for its allies, leading to the possibility of friendly contests on many constituencies ahead.
Hindustani Awam Morcha (HAM) chief and Union Minister Jitan Ram Manjhi has announced that his party will field its own candidates from the Bodh Gaya and Makhdumpur seats, which have been allotted to Lok Janshakti Party Ram Vilas. Expressing displeasure over some JDU seats being given to the LJP Ram Vilas, the Janata Dal-United has not yet announced the names of its candidates.
However, senior JDU leader and minister Bijendra Prasad Yadav, along with former MLA Anant Singh, have already filed their nomination papers. After the BJP released its list of 71 candidates, the Hindustani Awam Morcha yesterday announced its candidates for the six seats allotted to it. Our correspondent reports that the Congress Central Election Committee held a marathon meeting to finalise the names of candidates for the Grand Alliance in Delhi.
Following this, several names of candidates have been decided.
In Patna, discussions regarding seat sharing within the Grand Alliance are expected to conclude today, and the list of candidates may be announced afterwards. Congress Legislative Party Leader Shakeel Ahmed Khan said that an agreement over seats is almost done in the Grand Alliance.
Meanwhile, CPI-ML candidates have filed their nomination papers from Ara, Arwal, Paliganj, and Ziradei constituencies. The CPI has also announced candidates for six seats. The Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) has released its list of 40 candidates.
Amid the election buzz, senior BJP leader and Prime Minister Narendra Modi will launch the party’s campaign today. The Prime Minister will interact with booth-level workers in Bihar through the Namo App, urging them to remain united and work together for the NDA’s victory in the Assembly elections.
