PATNA: The Vikassheel Insaan Party (VIP) led by Mukesh Sahani received a severe jolt after its ally - Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) - announced to field its candidate from the Bochaha assembly seat in the by-election to be held next month.
The seat fell vacant after the serving legislator Musafir Paswan's death last year. Paswan had won the VIP's symbol in the assembly election held in 2020. The seat was allotted to Sahani under seat-sharing agreement among the four constituents of the NDA.
BJP's national secretary general Arun Singh said that Baby Kumari would be the official candidate of the party in the upcoming by-election to be held on Bochaha assembly seat in Muzaffarpur. Baby had won the election as an independent candidate in 2015 assembly polls.
This is the first jolt to Sahani after the assembly polls in Uttar Pradesh. He had contested election in Uttar Pradesh on his own and fielded candidates against the saffron party. In addition, he had exhorted supporters of his party to vote against the BJP nominees.
The the BJP's announcement came on expected lines. Speculations were rife that the saffron party would contest the by-election to be held on Bochaha seat. At present the BJP has 74 MLAs in the 243-member assembly.
"If the BJP wins the Bochaha seat, it's strength in the House will be same to that of the Rashtriya Janata Dal," a senior BJP leader said, adding the seat was earlier allotted to the VIP under seat sharing formula ahead of the assembly polls in 2020.
The situation has changed after the assembly polls in Bihar. This is evident from the outburst of BJP MP from Muzaffarpur Ajay Kumar Nishad, who had hinted at fielding of the party's candidate from Bochaha. Nishad had told the media that the fate of Mukesh Sahani would be decided before March 20. And the saffron party did it by announcing the name of the BJP candidate from Bochaha seat in the by-election.
Sahani, on the contrary, had said that the VIP would contest the by-election as the seat was earlier held by the party. "Hum kisi bhi kimat par seat chhodne wale nahi hain (We won't leave the seat at any cost)," he had said.
Meanwhile, the RJD took at potshot at the BJP for fielding its candidate on the seat earlier held by the VIP. "BJP ne Sahani ji ko dhokha diya hai (BJP has deceived Sahani),"RJD spokesperson Mritunjay Tiwari said.
The voting will be held on April 12 and counting of votes on April 16.