Lok Sabha polls 2024: Why seat-sharing is a tug-of-war for NDA in Bihar

Addressing a public rally in Aurangabad last week, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar said, “We have to stay strong, we have to work together, we have to ensure there is no controversy, and we have to take Bihar to greater heights.” Prime Minister Narendra Modi was also present at the rally.

Kumar’s statement shows that all is not well among the six different partners of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) in Bihar. Before the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leadership lies the daunting task of distributing 40 Lok Sabha seats among the NDA partners.

Apart from PM Modi and Kumar, Pashupati Kumar Paras, chief of the Rashtriya Lok Janshakti Party (RLJP), and former Chief Minister Jitan Ram Manjhi were present at the public meeting. However, other NDA partners like Upendra Kushwaha and Chirag Paswan were conspicuous by their absence. Kushwaha and Chirag skipped both Aurangabad and Begusarai rallies.

Partners not willing

Although there is clarity among the partners that PM Modi is the head of the NDA nationally while Kumar will head the NDA in Bihar, the seat-sharing talks have hit a stalemate as none of the partners is willing to vacate any of their Lok Sabha constituencies.

In the 2019 general elections, the NDA managed to win 39 out of the 40 Lok Sabha seats, with the BJP cornering 17 seats, the Janata Dal (United) (JD-U) 16 and Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) 6 seats. However, none of these NDA partners wants to accommodate smaller parties like Manjhi-led Hindustan Awam Morcha (HAM) and Kushwaha-led Rashtriya Lok Samata Party (RLSP).

“We have maintained that the 17 seats of the BJP and 16 seats of the JD(U) in Bihar are the assets of the NDA and should remain so. The seat-sharing talks are going on, and very soon, a decision will be taken, and the final formula for seat sharing will be presented before the people,” KC Tyagi, senior leader of the JD(U), told The Federal.

Although the JD(U) is keen to contest all 16 sitting seats, senior leaders of the BJP have offered JD(U) 14 seats and the remaining 2–3 seats in Jharkhand to accommodate all the NDA partners in Bihar.

A divided family

Another challenge the BJP faces in Bihar is the division of the LJP, which won six seats in 2019. After the death of former Union minister Ram Vilas Paswan, the party was divided between his brother Paras, who formed the RLJP, and his son Chirag, who formed the LJP (Ram Vilas).

To make matters worse for the BJP, Pasras and nephew Chirag, who are not on speaking terms, want to contest all six seats that were given to Ram Vilas Paswan in 2019, making a claim over his legacy. After the division in the party in October 2021, five sitting MPs chose to side with Paras. Chirag remains the lone MP of his party.

“Pashupati Kumar Paras has his own political party and we have ours. We are both part of the NDA. We only hope that the promises made by the BJP when we joined the NDA will be fulfilled at the time of seat sharing,” Ajay Kumar, the national spokesperson of the LJP (Ram Vilas), told The Federal.

Senior leaders of the Paras-led RLJP are also in no mood for a compromise, either, adamant as they are contesting all five seats. “It is obvious that since we have five MPs, we will be keen to contest all our sitting seats. The BJP leadership is the bigger partner in the NDA, but we are confident that we will contest on all our seats,” Sanjay Saraf, national spokesperson of the RLJP, said.

Aspirations of smaller partners

With major partners not ready to sacrifice some of their Lok Sabha seats, the BJP leadership has to keep the smaller partners in good humour before the Lok Sabha polls.

While parties like JD(U) and RLJP are unwilling to be accommodative, Kushwaha has demanded at least 3 Lok Sabha seats for his outfit in Bihar and Manjhi has sought 2 seats. There is speculation that the BJP will offer two seats to Kushwaha and one to Manjhi.