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Patna,(BiharTimes): Though three Janata Dal (United), two RJD and one BJP Rajya Sabha MPs are going to retire on March 30 disputes have cropped up over the sharing of seats between the two NDA partners. As it needs at least 35 MLAs to ensure the victory of one MP the biggest opposition, the RJD, with just 22 MLAs, is not in the position to win even a single seat. |
While the BJP wants the six seats to be shared equally between the two alliance partners Janata Dal (United) is staking claim on four seats leaving only two for the BJP. Tension is already brewing up between the two, especially after the UP election. The BJP state president, Dr C P Thakur, told the media after the state election committee meeting on Sunday that his party would like to contest three of the six Rajya Sabha seats. The party leadership would take up the demand with the Janata Dal (United) during seat sharing talks.
He was, however, confident that the leadership of the two allies would amicably work out the seat sharing agreement for the six Rajya Sabha and 11 Legislative Council seats.
But his JD(U) counterpart, Vashistha Narayan Singh, described BJP’s demand for three Rajya Sabha seats as premature and said the final decision on this would be decided at the meeting of the NDA leadership.
The BJP has 91 members in the Assembly, while the JD(U) 118. In that way BJP will have 21 surplus votes after ensuring victory in two seats while Janata Dal (United) 13 after ensuring victory of three seats.
The members who are retiring are Ali Anwar Ansari, Anil Sahni and Mahendra Prasad of JD(U), Ravi Shankar Prasad (BJP) and Jabir Husain and Rajniti Prasad of RJD.
A senior Janata Dal (United) leader said that his party is willing to give the BJP an extra seat in the Bihar Legislative Council in lieu of a Rajya Sabha seat. The NDA can win 10 out 11 seats of the state Legislative Council.
Reports said that the BJP’s state panel would recommend half-a-dozen names to the central leadership. Ravi Shankar Prasad, R K Sinha and Gopal Narayan Singh are likely to be included in the list. Gopal Narayan Singh is the former state president and recently a case has been lodged against him as explosives were recovered from his quarry in Rohtas district.
As already reported the party central leadership might have its own candidates, including Arun Jaitley, who completes his second term from Gujarat and wants to shift, co-in-charge of the party’s Bihar affairs, Dharmendra Pradhan, and senior leader S S Ahluwalia.
Interestingly both Ravi Shankar and Jaitley have completed two terms––the maximum a BJP leader can get according to the party’s rule.
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