Bihar elections: Mahagathbandhan finalises seat sharing, RJD may contest on 125

Bihar elections: Mahagathbandhan seat-sharing formula

The proposed seat-sharing arrangement reportedly allocates 125 seats to the RJD, 55 to 57 seats to the Congress, 35 seats to the Left parties, 20 seats to Mukesh Sahni’s VIP party, three seats to Pashupati Paras, and two seats to the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM). However, differences remain between the Congress and RJD regarding the exact distribution, even though leaders of both parties claim that everything has been finalised.

Contention between Congress, RJD over seat sharing

The main point of contention between the Congress and the RJD is the number of seats allocated to the Congress. The Congress is reportedly demanding 78 seats, while RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav is reportedly willing to offer only 48 seats. A compromise of around 55 seats is expected to be reached between the two parties.

Congress’ seat categorisation strategy

This time, the Congress has categorised its seat demands into three groups based on previous election margins:

• Category A: Seats lost by a margin of 5,000 to 10,000 votes
• Category B: Seats lost by 10,000 to 15,000 votes
• Category C: Seats lost by 15,000 to 20,000 votes

The Congress appears prepared to forego some of its traditional seats in the Bihar polls. For instance, in Patna district, the party had contested four seats in the previous election but is reportedly not claiming any this time. In addition, several seats previously held by the Congress may now go to the RJD. These include Sur Sand in Sitamarhi, Jale and Chainpur in Darbhanga, and Raja Pakar in Vaishali. In Raja Pakar, the sitting Congress MLA is Pratima Singh, but RJD reportedly wants to field Shivchandra Ram as its candidate.

JMM enters into fray

The Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) is also expected to contest in Bihar, focusing on areas bordering Jharkhand. Sources suggest that the party may get two seats in the seat-sharing arrangement, although its demand is reportedly higher.

Following the announcement of the Bihar Assembly election dates, political activity has intensified in the state. On October 8, the Congress will hold its first virtual meeting of the Central Election Committee (CEC) to finalise candidates for the state polls. The meeting is expected to approve the party’s first list of candidates. This will mark the first time the Congress CEC meeting is held virtually.