RANCHI: With the polls looming less than a month away, tensions brew within the INDIA alliance as the RJD stands firm on its demand to contest from two key seats – Chatra and Palamu in Jharkhand. Meanwhile, the CPI has wasted no time in announcing candidates for four Lok Sabha seats in the state, signalling a discord within the coalition.
JMM has already rejected the 7-5-1-1 formula, further suggesting that the alliance is still struggling to reach a consensus on seat sharing. As per the consensus reached earlier, 7 seats including Khunti, Lohardaga, and Godda will remain with Congress, while JMM will contest on 5 seats including Singhbhum, Giridih, and Chatra. Koderma will go to CPI (ML) and the Palamu seat to RJD.
Moreover, despite claims being made by JMM on the Lohardaga seat, Congress announced the name of Sukhdeo Bhagat for the seat along with the names of two other Lok Sabha seats – Kalicharan Munda from Khunti and Jai Prakash Bhai Patel from Hazaribagh. According to RJD leaders, party chief Lalu Prasad Yadav has said that RJD will field its candidates on Palamu and Chatra Lok Sabha seats, while on the remaining 12 seats, the party will help the candidates of its alliance partners to win on their respective seats. RJD will soon announce the names of its candidates, they said.
“If the INDIA alliance aims to prevent the BJP from attaining power, then all the alliance partners will need to make sacrifices in one way or another. In Bihar, we compromised by giving Congress the seats they wished to contest. How could the Congress conclude that we lack a mass base in Jharkhand? We have a substantial mass base here, and we intend to contest on two seats in Jharkhand,” said RJD State Spokesperson Dr Manoj Kumar.
Meanwhile, the CPI, breaking its ties with the INDIA alliance lliance in Jharkhand, has fielded its candidates in four seats - Chatra, Lohardaga, Palamu, and Dumka.
Tie-up with Congress teeters on brink
JMM has already rejected the 7-5-1-1 formula, further suggesting that the alliance is still struggling to reach a consensus on seat sharing. As per the consensus reached earlier, 7 seats including Khunti, Lohardaga, and Godda will remain with Congress, while JMM will contest on 5 seats including Singhbhum, Giridih, and Chatra. Koderma will go to CPI (ML) and the Palamu seat to RJD.