Key Points:
- Grand Alliance leaders meet at Tejashwi Yadav’s residence to finalize seat-sharing ahead of Election Commission announcement
- RJD instructs around 60 potential candidates to prepare; Congress and Left parties greenlight sitting MLAs
- VIP chief Mukesh Sahani confirms “everything is almost final,” only announcement date remains to be decided
- JMM delegation scheduled to meet RJD leadership to discuss seats in bordering constituencies
- Congress-RJD tensions emerge over seat allocation, raising fears of Haryana-Delhi style conflicts
- Left parties demand “respectable” share, prepare for 24 constituencies including traditional strongholds
- Focus shifts to identifying winnable candidates and coordinating joint campaign strategy
New Delhi: In a decisive move ahead of the Election Commission’s expected announcement, all constituent parties of the Grand Alliance convened at Leader of the Opposition Tejashwi Yadav’s Polo Road residence on Sunday evening. The meeting, attended by top leaders from RJD, Congress, VIP, CPI, CPI(M), and CPI(ML) Liberation, is being described not merely as a formality but as a “war room” for finalizing the electoral blueprint for the Bihar Assembly elections.
VIP supremo Mukesh Sahani, who arrived early at the meeting, declared confidently: “Everything is decided. We only have to decide on the date to announce the deal. Seat-sharing is not an issue anymore”. He added that the alliance would hold a press conference soon to make the formal announcement, signaling that internal deliberations have reached their final stage.
Seat-Sharing Numbers Broadly Finalized
According to sources close to the discussions, the constituent parties have already begun preparing their candidates based on tentative seat allocations. The Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), which holds relative strength in 133-136 constituencies based on past electoral performance, has instructed approximately 60 potential candidates to begin election preparations. These seats are primarily concentrated in constituencies with strong Muslim-Yadav (MY) voter bases and areas with significant Ravidas community influence, where the party has maintained dominance for three decades except during the 2010 elections.
Congress has directed most of its sitting MLAs to be ready for the upcoming polls, with only a few seats likely to see candidate changes. State Congress president Rajesh Kumar confirmed that the party was discussing seat-sharing and organizational matters with a “positive mindset,” expressing confidence that they were “close to finalising the seat-sharing deal”.
The Vikassheel Insaan Party (VIP) has instructed 18 potential candidates to prepare for elections, while Left parties have given the green signal to all their sitting MLAs to contest. CPI state secretary Ram Naresh Pandey reiterated his party’s demand for a “respectable” number of seats, noting that the CPI had already begun preparations for 24 constituencies. He emphasized: “We decided to be a part of the INDIA bloc to defeat the NDA in the upcoming polls”.
JMM Enters the Equation
Adding another dimension to the seat-sharing discussions, the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) has scheduled a crucial meeting with RJD leadership in Patna. JMM President and Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren assigned the responsibility to State Minister Sudivya Kumar Sonu and party spokesperson Supriyo Bhattacharya to negotiate seats in border constituencies where JMM claims a strong support base. The party points to the 2024 Jharkhand Assembly elections, where RJD was allotted 7 seats and won 4, as precedent for cooperation.
Focus on Winnable Candidates and Strategy
Beyond just numbers, the Sunday meeting is focused intensively on candidate selection. Top leaders from all alliance parties have been meeting potential candidates individually to assess their winnability before finalizing names. Several new faces are expected to be introduced, with the alliance determined to field only strong and competitive candidates who can maximize victory chances.
The meeting agenda also includes discussion of key campaign issues, the schedule for joint rallies, and better coordination mechanisms among alliance partners. Sources suggest that Tejashwi Yadav, as Grand Alliance coordinator, is preparing a comprehensive “roadmap” covering not just seat allocation but also which constituencies will see joint campaigning and what issues will form the core of the electoral narrative.
Congress Tensions and Internal Challenges
Despite the optimistic public statements, tensions are reportedly brewing within the alliance, particularly between RJD and Congress. Congress’s aggressive stance on seat demands has raised fears of a repeat of the Haryana and Delhi scenarios, where the party’s hardline positions complicated alliance dynamics. The uncertainty is compounded by the fact that Congress leader Rahul Gandhi is currently abroad, raising questions about the party’s final authorization of any deal.
Political analysts note that Tejashwi Yadav, eager to project himself as the Chief Minister face, is caught between accommodating Congress demands and maintaining RJD’s dominant position within the alliance. The Congress has not officially endorsed Tejashwi as the CM candidate, creating an undercurrent of ambiguity that could affect campaign messaging.
Pressure from NDA’s Progress
The urgency within the Grand Alliance has intensified after reports emerged that the rival NDA coalition, led by BJP’s Bihar election in-charge Dharmendra Pradhan, is close to sealing its own seat-sharing agreement. Some partners within the INDIA bloc are pressing for an early decision so that the alliance can shift focus from internal negotiations to active campaigning in constituencies.
Opinion polls and political analysts currently favor the NDA, citing the combined appeal of Chief Minister Nitish Kumar’s administrative experience and Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s popularity. The challenge for the Grand Alliance is to present a united front and clear leadership structure to counter the NDA’s electoral advantage.
Electoral Picture to Emerge Soon
Congress’s Bihar in-charge Krishna Allavaru described each meeting as significant, noting that leaders were “sitting together over the issue of seat-sharing and election preparations”. The consensus among alliance leaders is that the seat-sharing blueprint will be finalized by the end of the meeting, followed by a formal press conference to announce the deal to the public.
With the Election Commission’s official announcement expected imminently, the Grand Alliance is racing against time to present a cohesive and formidable electoral front for what promises to be one of 2025’s most crucial state elections.
