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Opposition bloc impasse on Bihar seat-share deal deepens
Bihar Pradesh Congress Committee president Rajesh Ram targeted Yadav for “shifting his stance” in the alliance negotiations
The Opposition bloc’s Bihar seat-sharing deadlock deepened on Saturday as the state Congress chief accused Rashtriya Janata Dal’s (RJD) Tejashwi Yadav of “sabotaging” the alliance even as other coalition partners announced the number of seats they are “contesting” despite no official consensus.
Bihar Pradesh Congress Committee president Rajesh Ram targeted Yadav for “shifting his stance” in the alliance negotiations. “He entered the AICC meeting with KC Venugopal as a cooperative ally. Now, his actions suggest he is working against the agreement,” Ram said.
The two-timeMLA’s remarks come amid growing tensions between the two major INDIA partners, who have failed to reach a consensus on seat sharing even as the deadline for filing nominations for the first phase of polls for 121 seats closed on Friday. In at least nine constituencies, including the SC-reserved Kutumba seat—from which Ram is a sitting MLA contesting—more than one candidate from the bloc might face off if an understanding is not reached. RJD has named Suresh Paswan as its candidate from the seat, which will go to vote in the second phase. Both Ram and Paawan have not filed their nominations, and the RJD has not released an official candidate list.
Accusing Yadav of undermining Dalit representation within the coalition, Ram said, “Tejashwi’s contempt for Dalit empowerment is laid bare, he’s deliberately starving us of our rightful share.”
Till Thursday night, intense negotiations among INDIA allies continued to finalise a seat-sharing deal, though disputes persisted between the RJD, Congress, and Left parties, people familiar with the talks said. The allies have filed candidates against each other in several constituencies — Lalganj, Vaishali, Rajapakar, Rosera, Biharsharif, Bachhwara, Tarapur, Kutumba and Kahalgaon. Additionally, discontent remains over the allocation of the Hayaghat and Bahadurpur seats.
“We have committed ourselves to proportional empowerment based on Rahul Gandhi’s blueprint. But RJD’s actions threaten to put it at risk,” said Ram.
The Congress has named its candidates on 54 of the state’s 243 seats. The RJD, which had been informally allotting its symbols to hopefuls, filed nominations in at least 60 seats. The last date for withdrawal of nominations for the first phase is October 20, and for the second phase, it is October 23. Voting will take place on November 6 and 11, with the results scheduled for November 14.
The RJD did not respond directly to Ram’s criticism but said the issues will be resolved amicably. “The party high command is closely monitoring developments, and the concerns arising within the Mahagathbandhan will be addressed,” said RJD spokesperson Mrityunjay Tiwari.
However, there were concerns within the alliance about the impact of these disputes. “While national leaders have maintained a show of unity, the ground reality suggests otherwise. Such intra-alliance contests could blunt the Opposition’s electoral edge, making it easier for the ruling alliance to retain or capture these seats,” a senior Congress leader said on condition of anonymity.
Another Grand Alliance leader echoed these concerns, accusing the RJD and Congress of playing a pressure game by fielding candidates in disputed seats. “This approach is only going to harm the coalition and send a message of disunity within the INDIA bloc,” the leader said on condition of anonymity.
There was no clarity at the time of going to print exactly what the break-up of seats in the Grand Alliance would look like. But Dipankar Bhattacharya, general secretary of CPI(M)—another Oppn bloc member—said they will contest 20 seats.
“Seat-sharing hasn’t been announced, but everyone is filing nominations. There is complete unity on the 20 seats of the CPI(ML) because we had decided that there would be no room for friendly fights here,” he said. The party also released its list of 20 candidates for the high-stakes elections.
On Friday, Mukesh Sahani of another INDIA member, Vikassheel Insaan Party (VIP), announced on X that his party will contest 15 seats. Sahani, who was earlier adamant about at least 18 seats, agreed to 15 after an intervention from Rahul Gandhi, said a Congress leader aware of the matter.
The National Democratic Alliance (NDA), which has announced a seat-sharing formula across all the state’s seats, stepped up its attack on the Opposition bloc, calling it divided and disorganised.
“There is no such thing as ‘mahagathbandhan’, there is no trust in Tejashwi Yadav. They are not ready to consider each other leaders,” Union minister and senior BJP leader Giriraj Singh said.
RJD spokesperson Chittaranjan Gagan blunted the charge and said that talks between the RJD and Congress were still ongoing and a seat-sharing agreement would be finalised for all 243 seats.
“We will have a final seat-sharing deal soon. There are certain issues which would be sorted out before the last date of withdrawal of the first phase on October 20,” he said and added that they have reached a deal with the VIP, and there were no disputes with the CPI and CPI-ML (Liberation).
