RJD and Congress leaders in Bihar face off over seat-sharing as Mahagathbandhan unity falters ahead of elections (Photo: Pinterest)
The nomination process for the Bihar elections ended with chaos in the Mahagathbandhan while candidates from the alliance have been fielded jointly for nearly all seats, the strange absence of a formal seat-sharing agreement apparently stirs speculation. While everyone claims to be united, the squabbles over seat distribution between factions in the Mahagathbandhan continue to boggle the mind about one thing or the other. By all indications these opaque differences do not seem to exist between the NDA members, who seem to have forged an alliance that has been fully able to map out their seats with no possibility of so-called ‘friendly contests between the partners.
Mahagathbandhan or the Grand Alliance, is a merger of many a political party that defies the present NDA in Bihar with big names a predominant presence of the RJD, Congress, CPI and smaller regional parties have characteristically been part of this alliance. Collectively the Mahagathbandhan stands to challenge the NDA as the alternative regime of the stathe feeling of union has often been belied by their bitter quarrels over seat-sharing threatening to break away the alliance's flimsy bonds.
The Congress party of which Mahagathbandhan is a vital part, has not gone weak at its knees in the seat-sharing negotiations. Things started to change for Congress after the appointment of a new PCC (Pradesh Congress Committee) Chief and the arrival of Krishna Allavaru as the Bihar in-charge. This newfound assertiveness is attributed to an increasing alignment with Rahul Gandhi's vision and has led to a rift with the RJD while Congress was prepared to strongly downsize its seats from 70 to 60 or 61 for the sake of new partners, it was unwilling to give up on some important constituencies such as Kahalgaon and Bachwara. This unwillingness to compromise infuriated many other parties and the subsequent delay in turn, further entrenched Congress's hardening position.
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Complicated by the entry into Mahagathbandhan of Mukesh Sahni's Vikassheel Insaan Party (VIP), which has vocally demanded sixty seats, claiming that they were promised Deputy Chief Ministership-a claim that has raised eyebrows considering VIP holds no seats in the Bihar assembly as of now. The CPI(ML) which did very well in the 2020 elections by winning 12 of the 19 seats contested is now also making demands of more representation for itself asking for upward of thirty seats. The Indian Inclusive Party and Pashupati Paras have entered into the grudging seat-sharing and are only adding to the confusion.
The bossy attitude of RJD becoming more and more conspicuous, the party hardly reconciles being described as one of the major parties in Mahagathbandhan. RJD wants to contest 130-135 seats in the new assembly elections, angering and driving other smaller allies, who feel that the dominant stance of RJD is more like a boss than anything midway of a partner to the alliance with other veteran leaders of Mahagathbandhan they lambasted RJD for wilfully encumbering the alliance, ignoring their collective strength, and making their seat negotiations evermore difficult. The more they claim to be and act like a "bossy party" than a partner in this alliance, the more the quarrel deepens.
In stark contrast to the Mahagathbandhan, this seat-sharing calmness has prevailed for the NDA with clear allocations for each partner, NDA avoided the embarrassment of friendly competitions and internal disputes. Although the alliance consists of various regional parties, the seat-sharing mechanism is straightforward with each partner being quite certain of its assignment and contribution. The contrast between the two alliances is noteworthy; where the Mahagathbandhan is struggling with internal wrangling, the NDA has a united well-coordinated front.
As the elections approach, Mahagathbandhan finds itself at a crossroad and the never-ending disputes regarding seat-sharing jeopardize the coalition's worthiness to serve as a serious contender against the NDA should the alliance not settle differences soon, it runs the risk of being perceived as torn and ineffective before the voters. The crux of the matter remains Will Mahagathbandhan somehow be able to set its house in order and act together or will the NDA be able to ride on the advantages of being real-time in the fore and thus gain from this delay and dispute? Only time will tell since the stakes never were this high.
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Disclaimer: This article is based on public news reports and political developments. It does not represent the views of any political party or group.
