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Nitish Kumar’s JD(U) names candidate for Arunachal West Lok Sabha seat
Ruhi Tangung, who heads the Arunachal Pradesh unit of the JD(U), will be the party’s candidate from the Arunachal West Lok Sabha seat, said party general secretary Afaque Ahmad
PATNA: The Nitish Kumar-led Janata Dal (United) on Wednesday named its candidate for the Arunachal West Lok Sabha constituency in a sign that the differences within the Opposition INDIA bloc are far from over.
Ruhi Tangung, who heads the Arunachal Pradesh unit of the JD (U), will be the party’s candidate from the Arunachal West Lok Sabha seat, said JD(U) general secretary Afaque Ahmad in a statement.
“This announcement is being made as directed by party president Nitish Kumar,” he said in a release issued on Wednesday.
Arunachal Pradesh has two Lok Sabha seats.
In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) won both seats. Earth sciences minister Kiren Rijiju represents the Arunachal West seat in the Lok Sabha while his party colleague Tapir Gao represents the East seat.
The Congress, the largest among the 28 parties that comprise the opposition alliance, was second in both seats in 2019.
To be sure, the JD(U) won 7 seats in the Arunachal Pradesh assembly elections held in June 2019 against the BJP’s 41. But in December 2020, 6 JD-U MLAs and the lone legislator from the Peoples’ Party of Arunachal (PPA) joined the BJP. The seventh JD(U) MLA also quit the party and joined the BJP in August 2022 after Nitish Kumar walked out of the NDA in Bihar and teamed up with the Rashtriya Janata Dal and the Congress.
Bosiram Siram, working president of Arunachal Pradesh Congress committee, said the Congress was ready with its candidates too. “I have no idea about the JD (U) announcement or about any seat sharing agreement. The party’s high command has also not informed us of any such thing. As of now we have candidates for both the Lok Sabha seats from Arunachal Pradesh and will wait for a green signal from the party leadership on who would contest from them,” Siram said.
JD (U) leaders also indicated that Bihar Legislative Council chairman Devesh Chandra Thakur could be the party’s candidate from the Sitamarhi Lok Sabha seat in place of Sunil Kumar Pintu, the sitting MP, who is likely to join BJP. Thakur, during the party’s national executive meeting in Delhi, is reported to have said that his name had been cleared by the party chief.
RJD leader and deputy CM Tejashwi Yadav on Wednesday said discussions were on among leaders of the INDIA bloc on the next meeting of the coalition, where some key decisions were expected. “There are discussions about the date and the modalities. It will be made known to all when a decision is made,” he told reporters on Wednesday. JD(U) leaders said Nitish Kumar was expected to be given a formal role at the next meeting. There is speculation that Kumar could be appointed convenor of grouping.
Bosiram Siram, working president of Arunachal Pradesh Congress committee, said the Congress was ready with its candidates too. “I have no idea about the JD (U) announcement or about any seat sharing agreement. The party’s high command has also not informed us of any such thing. As of now we have candidates for both the Lok Sabha seats from Arunachal Pradesh and will wait for a green signal from the party leadership on who would contest from them,” Siram said.
