With the Bihar Assembly poll just months away, Chief Minister and ruling Janata Dal (United) president Nitish Kumar is all ready to kick-start his party’s poll campaign by addressing a virtual rally on August 7.
The poll is due in October-November later this year.
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JD(U) party leaders said over 10 lakh people, including party workers and leaders, would be connected through different social media to Mr. Kumar’s August 7 virtual rally.
The party has also constituted four teams headed by top party leaders RCP Singh, Basistha Narain Singh, Bijendra Prasad Yadav and Rajiv Ranjan Singh alias Lalan Singh to hold virtual sammelans (conferences) in all 243 Assembly constituencies from July 18 to 31.
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Each team is supposed to address at least six virtual conferences every day.
“We’ll also hold virtual State-level meetings of party’s senior leaders and office bearers at district and regional level on July 16 addressed by senior party leader RCP Singh”, said a senior JD(U) leader.
Besides, the JD(U) has also scheduled a series of virtual meetings of its different cells from July 7 to July 15. The student’s wing of the party has already announced to hold ‘Tuesday Talk’ every Tuesday to connect with the members and leaders.
Alliance problems
Meanwhile, the buzz in State’s political corridor is that ahead of the poll, the Lok Janshakti Party may come out of the NDA alliance to join the Congress, and that the ‘mahagathbandhan’ (grand alliance) partner Hindustani Awam Morcha (Secular) could be a part of the NDA.
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LJP president Chirag Paswan is said to be sulking over his sour relations with Mr. Kumar, while HAM(S) chief Jitan Ram Manjhi has publicly expressed his displeasure against principal ‘mahagathbandhan’ party the Rashtriya Janata Dal.
“If Chirag Paswan wants to come along with us, we’re open to have all like-minded people with us…it will be expansion of our grand alliance,” said senior State Congress leader and party MLC Prem Chandra Mishra.
Even during a recent virtual meeting of Bihar Congress leaders with party leader Rahul Gandhi, a senior State leader is said to have briefed Mr. Gandhi about Mr. Chirag Paswan being unhappy with the NDA alliance and the Congress should keep an eye on the development.
Similarly, the talk is that both the BJP and JD(U) leaders are mulling ways to welcome Mr. Manjhi-led HAM (S) into the NDA fold to compensate the possible loss of dalit vote after LJP’s exit from the block.
“Being party president, Mr. Manjhi is free to take his next political move in the larger interest of the party’s future”, said HAM(S) leader and spokesperson Danish Rizwan.
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Earlier, Mr. Manjhi had given a deadline to ‘mahagathbandhan’ parties to form a coordination committee by July 2 to take decision on seat-sharing adjustments among allies for the coming Assembly poll but his ultimatum was not taken on a “serious note”, said the party leader.
Meanwhile, a State BJP leader said, “whoever wants to join NDA must put faith in the leadership of PM Narendra Modi and CM Nitish Kumar in the State”.
On the other hand, another ‘mahagathbandhan’ partner Rashtriya Lok Samata Party (RLSP) too is said to be unhappy with the “way things are moving among grand alliance partners in view of the upcoming assembly elections”.
Party leader Upendra Kushwaha, political sources said, is in touch with top Congress leaders mulling over his party’s future move.
“It is absolutely premature to say anything on this,” said an RLSP leader.
