New Delhi: The Congress and the RJD finally sat down to discuss the Mahagathbandhan’s preparedness for the Bihar polls, due in October-November. RJD chief Tejashwi Yadav on Tuesday met Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and Lok Sabha Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi to finalise the poll strategy for the elections.The meeting comes amid indications that hard bargaining is on the cards among Mahagathbandhan allies, with all parties looking to strengthen their hold on the ground. Insiders claim that the elections will be jointly contested and no face will be projected before the results. Seats will be decided in advance. The alliance partners will also seek out smaller parties with whom the alliance can be strengthened. Interestingly the NDA suffered a minor blow with the Rashtriya Lok Janshakti Party led by Pashupati Kumar Paras exiting from the ruling alliance, citing neglect and injustice to Dalits. The party was formed in 2021 after a section of leaders walked out of the Lok Janshakti Party. Speaking to reporters after the meeting with Congress leaders, Tejaswi Yadav alleged that Nitish Kumar has been “hijacked” by the BJP. “Nitish Ji has been hijacked. Amit Shah has been saying that they will fight elections under his leadership but does not say Nitish will become the CM,” Yadav said. When asked about the Mahagathbandhan’s chief ministerial face, Yadav urged the media not to speculate. “I don’t know why you all are worried about the CM face. We will talk among ourselves and decide. Things will become clear… you all should not worry about it,” the former deputy chief minister said. The RJD leader said the Congress and the RJD will sit in Patna to finalise a strategy and asserted that the I.N.D.I.A. bloc is committed to taking Bihar on the path of progress. “The incumbent government has been there for 20 years in Bihar and PM Narendra Modi has been at the helm at the Centre for 11 years… Amid all this, Bihar has been given stepmotherly treatment. Bihar is the most economically backward, has the lowest per capita income, the lowest farmers’ income and the highest migration. We all want to fight the elections on real issues,” Mr Yadav said. “We are in the Opposition, it is our responsibility to highlight the limitations of the government to the public,” he said. Congress general secretary (organisation) K.C. Venugopal, Bihar Congress chief Rajesh Kumar and AICC Bihar in-charge Krishna Allavaru were present in the meeting.
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