Tejashwi Yadav named Mahagathbandhan's CM face ahead of Bihar polls

Updated on: Oct 23, 2025 05:19 pm IST

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The announcement was made by senior Congress leader Ashok Gehlot on Thursday during the INDIA bloc's joint press conference

Former Bihar deputy CM and RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav was named as the Mahagathbandhan's Chief Minister face for the upcoming Bihar Assembly Election.

RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav was named as the Mahagathbandhan's CM face

The announcement was made by senior Congress leader Ashok Gehlot on Thursday during the INDIA bloc's joint press conference.

The move comes a day after the Congress high command rushed senior party leader Ashok Gehlot to Patna to defuse tensions within the grand alliance.

Also Read | Bihar's demographic dividend: From burden to advantage

Gehlot met with RJD chief Lalu Prasad Yadav and Tejashwi Yadav at their residence in Patna, amid reports of a widening rift between alliance partners, stemming from the issue of a "friendly fight" over some assembly seats.

Gehlot, who has been named Senior Election Observer by the AICC, assured that the INDIA bloc is "fully united" after he and the Bihar Congress in-charge, Krishna Allavaru, met with the top leadership of the RJD.

Also Read | INDIA bloc scrambles to quell Bihar tensions

Earlier in the day, Communist Party of India (CPI) leader Ram Naresh Pandey declared that Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader Tejashwi Yadav is the Chief Ministerial candidate and is the "future CM" of the State.

"All questions that are being raised are wrong. CM face of Mahagathbandhan is Tejashwi Yadav. So, any controversy on the poster is unnecessary. We are holding the press conference as a united front," Pandey told ANI.

Bihar Assembly Election and Mahagatbandhan

The 2025 Bihar elections will have the main contest between the National Democratic Alliance and the Mahagathbandhan.

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The Mahagathbandhan has about 12 seats where at least two allies have filed nominations.

Mahagathbandhan, led by Rashtriya Janata Dal, includes Congress party, the Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) (CPI-ML) led by Deepankar Bhattacharya, the Communist Party of India (CPI), the Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPM), and Mukesh Sahani's Vikasheel Insaan Party (VIP).

Also Read | Some friendly fights not a big deal, says Ashok Gehlot after meeting Lalu, Tejashwi

However, this notion of a friendly fight has invited criticism from the NDA alliance, which has remained united despite its seat-sharing arrangements being announced.

NDA includes the Bharatiya Janata Party, Janata Dal (United), Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas), Hindustani Awam Morcha (Secular) and Rashtriya Lok Morcha.