The seats on offer to the Congress are Sasaram, Muzaffarpur, Bettiah, Katihar, Kishanganj, Nawada, Patna Sahib and Samastipur. However, sources say that the Congress also wants the seats of Purnia, Karakat and Aurangabad.
The Bihar Grand Alliance (Mahagathbandhan) may not be near any consensus as far as seat sharing deal for the Lok Sabha elections is concerned. Sources say that that the Congress is seeking 11 seats to contest on, but Lalu Yadav-led Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) is willing to concede only 8.
The seats on offer to the Congress are Sasaram, Muzaffarpur, Bettiah, Katihar, Kishanganj, Nawada, Patna Sahib and Samastipur.
However, sources say that the Congress also wants the seats of Purnia, Karakat and Aurangabad.
RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav is likely to meet Congress leaders in Delhi today to finalise the seat sharing deal. The Congress Central Election Committee (CEC) is also expected to meet at 6 pm today and discussion on Bihar is said to be on the cards.
An announcement on the seat-sharing deal is likely expected tomorrow, sources said.
In 2019, the Congress contetsted nine seats but won only one. The RJD didn’t win any. The BJP-led NDA won 39 out of 40 seats, with the BJP securing 17 seats. Nitish Kumar’s Janta Dal United (JDU) got 16, while Chirag Paswan’s Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) won all six they contested.
Nitish Kumar is now back in the NDA after briefly being with the Grand Alliance. The BJP has also finalised seat-sharing deal with Paswan.
Last week, the NDA announced its seat distribution in Bihar. The BJP will contest 17 seats, JD(U) 16 and the LJP five, while Jitan Ram Manjhi’s Hindustan Awam Morcha and Upendra Kushwaha’s RLM will each contest one seat.