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Bihar bypolls: Cong, RJD set to part ways
Upset by RJD’s unilateral decision to name the candidates for both the seats, Congress has also begun searching for a suitable candidate for Tarapur constituency
PATNA
The alliance between the Congress and the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) in Bihar seems to be over, at least for the upcoming by-elections in Tarapur and Kusheshwarsthan assembly constituencies, where voting is scheduled for October 30.
Upset by RJD’s unilateral decision to name the candidates for both the seats, Congress, which had unsuccessfully contested from Kusheshwarsthan in 2020 polls, has also begun searching for a suitable candidate for Tarapur constituency in Munger district after a formal go-ahead by All India Congress Committee (AICC) in-charge for Bihar, Bhakta Charan Das, on Monday.
Bihar Pradesh Congress Committee (BPCC) chief Madan Mohan Jha, citing his conversation with Das, said the party’s nominees for both the seats would be announced on Tuesday after final clearance from the AICC chief Sonia Gandhi. “The party may reconsider its decision to contest both the seats only if RJD bows out of Kusheshwarsthan and support the Congress candidate there,” said Jha.
“Former Congress legislature party leader Ashok Kumar, who is also working president of BPCC, is set to file his papers for Kusheshwarsthan seat in Darbhanga. He lost the seat to JD(U)’s Shashi Bhushan Hazari in 2020 assembly polls by a small margin,” said the Congress leader, adding that party’s deliberations were on to name a strong leader from Tarapur, where the party had fought last in 2010.
In the ruling camp, the Janata Dal (United)-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) is firmly supporting JDU’s nominees, Rajiv K Singh and Aman Bhushan Hazari, in the fray for Tarapur and Kusheshwarsthan (reserved for the scheduled caste) seats. The names of candidates were announced by state BJP chief Sanjay Jaisawal two days ago.
Senior Congress leader Kishore Kumar Jha said RJD always took his party for a ride and parted ways when it found a better opportunity. “Ideology is secondary thing for RJD, which ditched the Congress in 2000, 2009 and in 2010. Still, Congress relied heavily on RJD and remained eager to sacrifice the cadres’ aspirations in the name of the united opposition,” said Jha.
Kadwa MLA and AICC secretary Shakeel Ahmad Khan said RJD indulged in opportunistic politics.
The relationship between the two allies worsened recently after former JNU students’ union leader Kanhaiya Kumar left CPI and joined Congress. Though RJD leaders dismissed Kanhaiya’s joining as inconsequential in the state politics, senior party leader Shivanand Tiwari took a swipe at Congress, saying it should make the former JNUSU leader as its national chief.
