Fear of defections haunts Congress in Bihar as NDA pushes ‘Congress-Mukt’ plan

Political observers say NDA, led by the BJP and JD(U), has record of poaching opposition legislators, Congress fear the alliance may go to any length to lure away its fragile group of MLAs

Patna: Reeling from a crushing defeat in the Bihar assembly elections, the Congress is bracing for possible defections among its newly elected MLAs. With only six legislators in the 243-member House, the party is at its most vulnerable as the ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA) is widely believed to be stepping up efforts to engineer a ‘Congress-Mukt’ Bihar legislature.

Reeling from a crushing defeat in the Bihar assembly elections, the Congress is bracing for possible defections among its newly elected MLAs. (Representative photo)

Political observers said the NDA, led by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Janata Dal (United) [JD(U)], has a history of poaching opposition members to consolidate power, and people within the Congress fear the alliance could go to any length to lure away its fragile cadre of MLAs.

The anxiety stems from the fact that most of these MLAs are recent entrants or turncoats with little attachment to the party’s ideology or long-term affiliation. Qamrul Hoda, who unsuccessfully contested the 2020 assembly polls on an All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) ticket, joined the Congress only in October this year and went on to win from Kishanganj, a traditional party stronghold. Similarly, Manoj Biswas, the newly elected MLA from Forbesganj, aligned with the Congress in the first week of October, shortly before being given the nomination.

Surendra Kushwaha, elected from Valmiki Nagar, joined the Congress last year after quitting the Rashtriya Lok Samta Party (RLSP) founded by Upendra Kushwaha. Abhishek Ranjan, who triumphed in the Chanpatia constituency in West Champaran, is a Youth Congress leader but maintains close ties with former deputy chief minister and BJP MLA Renu Devi, raising concerns that a lucrative political offer could sway him. Manohar Prasad, who switched from the JD(U) to the Congress in 2015 under a seat-sharing arrangement and won from Manihari, has shown questionable commitment, rarely attending key party meetings in Bihar. Obidur Rahman stands as a potential exception, being a longstanding Congress leader likely to remain steadfast.

This vulnerability is not unprecedented for the Bihar Congress. In the past, the party has suffered significant defections, including in the legislative council where former Bihar Pradesh Congress Committee (BPCC) chief Ashok Choudhary, along with Dilip Chaudhary and others, quit to join the JD(U). Similarly, MLAs Murari Gautam and Siddharth Saurav abandoned the party, further eroding its base.

Senior Congress leader and former All India Congress Committee (AICC) member Kishore Kumar Jha highlighted the perils of relying on such alliances. “The fear of poaching will continue to haunt the party as long as it depends on turncoats to contest elections,” Jha said. Citing historical precedents, he added, “People contest and win on the Congress symbol but never serve the party or work to strengthen the organisation.”

Jha attributed the party’s debacle to deeper strategic flaws. He criticised the Congress for becoming overly casteism in its pursuit of Other Backward Classes (OBC) and Extremely Backward Classes (EBC) votes, which adversely impacted the election outcomes. “Outsiders and even a Member of Parliament from another party looted tickets, sidelining local workers entirely,” he said. Jha also blamed the Mahagathbandhan’s announcement of Tejashwi Yadav as chief ministerial candidate and Mukesh Sahni as deputy CM for effectively marginalising the Congress. “Handing over the entire Bihar election to Tejashwi without any control became the main reason for the alliance’s shameful defeat,” he added.

Echoing these sentiments, former BPCC chief and Rajya Sabha member Akhilesh Prasad Singh demanded an immediate organisational revamp to enhance public connect. He pinned the rout on the lack of coordination among Mahagathbandhan allies, which resulted in friendly contests that fragmented votes.

Former Congress MLA Harkhu Jha said that as the NDA eyes a stronger grip on the assembly, the Congress must urgently rethink its electoral tactics and policies to reclaim its traditional vote bank, rather than chasing short-term gains through unreliable alliances. “Failure to do so could spell the end of its already diminished presence in Bihar politics,” he added.