Editor's Pick | Grand alliance announces seat-sharing deal in Bihar

A day after the last date for filing nomination papers for the first phase of Lok Sabha election scheduled on April 19, the Rashtriya Janata Dal-(RJD) and Congress-led mahagathbandhan (grand alliance) in Bihar announced their seat-sharing agreement on Friday. According to the agreement, the RJD will contest 26 seats of the 40 Lok Sabha seats in the State, and the Congress nine, while five seats have been allocated to the three Left parties, the Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist), the Communist Party of India (CPI) and the Communist Party of India (Marxist). The announcement was jointly made by the parties at the State headquarters of the RJD here. While the RJD will contest Purnia, Aurangabad, Gaya, Jamui, Nawada, Saran, Patliputra, Buxar, Ujjiyarpur, Jehanabad, Darbhanga, Banka, Araria, Munger, Sitamarhi, Jhanjharpur, Madhubani, Siwan, Seohar, Vaishali, Hajipur, Supaul, Valmikinagar, East Champaran, Madhepura, and Gopalganj, the Congress will fight in Kishanganj, Katihar, Samastipur, Patna Sahib, Sasaram, West Champaran, Muzaffarpur, Bhagalpur, and Maharajganj. In the 2019 Lok Sabha election too, the Congress had contested nine seats winning the lone Kishanganj seat. The BJP-led NDA had won the remaining 39 seats in the State. Among the Left parties, the CPI (ML) is to contest three seats — Bhojpur (Ara), Nalanda and Karakat. While the CPI will contest the Begusarai seat, for which it has already announced Awadhesh Rai as the candidate, the CPI(M) will contest the Khagaria seat. RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav, who is also the Leader of the Opposition in the State Assembly, was conspicuous by his absence during the announcement. State Congress chief Akhilesh Prasad Singh, though, was present. The Begusarai seat has gone to the Communist Party of India (CPI) amid speculations that Congress leader and former Jawaharlal Nehru University Students’ Union (JNUSU) president Kanhaiya Kumar would be fielded there. In the 2019 Lok Sabha poll, Mr. Kumar, a CPI candidate then, was defeated in Begusarai by Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidate Giriraj Singh by over two lakh votes. Mr. Kumar later joined the Congress party. With the RJD keeping the Purnia Lok Sabha seat for itself following the seat-sharing arrangement in Bihar, the Congress has been left with a tricky situation in the form of former MP Rajesh Ranjan, alias Pappu Yadav. The party also has to contend with furious State leaders who feel that it is settling for too little. The Congress has got nine, and in a majority of these seats, State leaders claim, it has a nominal presence, with the caste arithmetic leaning in favour of the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance. With regard to Purnia, the RJD’s decision to stick with its candidate, Bima Bharti, who switched over from the Janata Dal (U), is being seen as a direct snub to the Gandhis who brought Mr. Pappu Yadav on board recently. Mr. Pappu Yadav has not announced yet whether he will contest as an Independent, but citing the example of Wayanad — where senior CPI leader Annie Raja is contesting against former Congress president Rahul Gandhi — hinted at the possibility of “friendly fights”. Mr. Pappu Yadav, whose last electoral success came in 2014, when he won from Madhepura on RJD ticket, had represented Purnia thrice in the 1990s, two times as an Independent. “I am committed to making Rahul Gandhi the country’s Prime Minister and helping a Congress revival in Bihar where, five years from now, it will be a force to reckon with in all 40 Lok Sabha constituencies,” Mr. Pappu Yadav said. His remark struck a chord with several Congress leaders, who feel short-changed. The Congress, many feel, should have negotiated for more and better seats, since in a national election, it has better resonance than the RJD. “In Bihar, our party has surrendered to Lalu Prasad’s whims and fancies. Our State leadership couldn’t keep the party’s interest as supreme while negotiating seats with the RJD and now our central leadership looks helpless,” senior Bihar Congress leader Kishore Kumar Jha told The Hindu. He said the seats where the Congress could have been stronger were given to the RJD by a “weak State leadership”. Other than Kishanganj and Katihar, the Congress has not won the remaining seven in several decades. For example, in Muzaffarpur, the Congress last won in 1984 and the RJD in 1998. In Maharajganj, the Congress last won in 1984. The Patna Sahib seat has been with the BJP since 2009 and the Congress does not fancy its chances here. “I think Mallikarjun Khargeji and Rahul Gandhiji should call off these relations and go it alone instead of being in this insulting alliance,” Mr. Jha said. The Hindu’s Editorial A balancing act: On the fiscal deficit target Flight from fatigue: On the DGCA and flight duty time limitation norms The Hindu’s Daily News Quiz “The Enforcement Directorate’s mission is to finish the Aam Aadmi Party.” Who said the statement? Arvind Kejriwal Rahul Gandhi M.K. Stalin Manish Sisodia To know the answer and to play the full quiz, click here. [logo] Editor's Pick 30 March 2024 [The Hindu logo] In the Editor's Pick newsletter, The Hindu explains why a story was important enough to be carried on the front page of today's edition of our newspaper. [Arrow]Open in browser [Mail icon]More newsletters Grand alliance announces seat-sharing deal in Bihar A day after the last date for filing nomination papers for the first phase of Lok Sabha election scheduled on April 19, the Rashtriya Janata Dal-(RJD) and Congress-led mahagathbandhan (grand alliance) in Bihar announced their [seat-sharing agreement]( on Friday. According to the agreement, the RJD will contest 26 seats of the 40 Lok Sabha seats in the State, and the Congress nine, while five seats have been allocated to the three Left parties, the Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist), the Communist Party of India (CPI) and the Communist Party of India (Marxist). The announcement was jointly made by the parties at the State headquarters of the RJD here. While the RJD will contest Purnia, Aurangabad, Gaya, Jamui, Nawada, Saran, Patliputra, Buxar, Ujjiyarpur, Jehanabad, Darbhanga, Banka, Araria, Munger, Sitamarhi, Jhanjharpur, Madhubani, Siwan, Seohar, Vaishali, Hajipur, Supaul, Valmikinagar, East Champaran, Madhepura, and Gopalganj, the Congress will fight in Kishanganj, Katihar, Samastipur, Patna Sahib, Sasaram, West Champaran, Muzaffarpur, Bhagalpur, and Maharajganj. In the 2019 Lok Sabha election too, the Congress had contested nine seats winning the lone Kishanganj seat. The BJP-led NDA had won the remaining 39 seats in the State. Among the Left parties, the CPI (ML) is to contest three seats — Bhojpur (Ara), Nalanda and Karakat. While the CPI will contest the Begusarai seat, for which it has already announced Awadhesh Rai as the candidate, the CPI(M) will contest the Khagaria seat. RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav, who is also the Leader of the Opposition in the State Assembly, was conspicuous by his absence during the announcement. State Congress chief Akhilesh Prasad Singh, though, was present. The Begusarai seat has gone to the Communist Party of India (CPI) amid speculations that Congress leader and former Jawaharlal Nehru University Students’ Union (JNUSU) president Kanhaiya Kumar would be fielded there. In the 2019 Lok Sabha poll, Mr. Kumar, a CPI candidate then, was defeated in Begusarai by Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidate Giriraj Singh by over two lakh votes. Mr. Kumar later joined the Congress party. With the RJD keeping the Purnia Lok Sabha seat for itself following the seat-sharing arrangement in Bihar, the [Congress has been left with a tricky situation]( in the form of former MP Rajesh Ranjan, alias Pappu Yadav. The party also has to contend with furious State leaders who feel that it is settling for too little. The Congress has got nine, and in a majority of these seats, State leaders claim, it has a nominal presence, with the caste arithmetic leaning in favour of the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance. With regard to Purnia, the RJD’s decision to stick with its candidate, Bima Bharti, who switched over from the Janata Dal (U), is being seen as a direct snub to the Gandhis who brought Mr. Pappu Yadav on board recently. Mr. Pappu Yadav has not announced yet whether he will contest as an Independent, but citing the example of Wayanad — where senior CPI leader Annie Raja is contesting against former Congress president Rahul Gandhi — hinted at the possibility of “friendly fights”. Mr. Pappu Yadav, whose last electoral success came in 2014, when he won from Madhepura on RJD ticket, had represented Purnia thrice in the 1990s, two times as an Independent. “I am committed to making Rahul Gandhi the country’s Prime Minister and helping a Congress revival in Bihar where, five years from now, it will be a force to reckon with in all 40 Lok Sabha constituencies,” Mr. Pappu Yadav said. His remark struck a chord with several Congress leaders, who feel short-changed. The Congress, many feel, should have negotiated for more and better seats, since in a national election, it has better resonance than the RJD. “In Bihar, our party has surrendered to Lalu Prasad’s whims and fancies. Our State leadership couldn’t keep the party’s interest as supreme while negotiating seats with the RJD and now our central leadership looks helpless,” senior Bihar Congress leader Kishore Kumar Jha told The Hindu. He said the seats where the Congress could have been stronger were given to the RJD by a “weak State leadership”. Other than Kishanganj and Katihar, the Congress has not won the remaining seven in several decades. For example, in Muzaffarpur, the Congress last won in 1984 and the RJD in 1998. In Maharajganj, the Congress last won in 1984. The Patna Sahib seat has been with the BJP since 2009 and the Congress does not fancy its chances here. “I think Mallikarjun Khargeji and Rahul Gandhiji should call off these relations and go it alone instead of being in this insulting alliance,” Mr. Jha said. The Hindu’s Editorial [Arrow][A balancing act: On the fiscal deficit target]( [Arrow][Flight from fatigue: On the DGCA and flight duty time limitation norms]( The Hindu’s Daily News Quiz “The Enforcement Directorate’s mission is to finish the Aam Aadmi Party.” Who said the statement? - Arvind Kejriwal - Rahul Gandhi - M.K. 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