NEW DELHI: After several rounds of meetings with allies, the BJP finally managed to reach a consensus on seat-sharing for the high-stakes Bihar Assembly elections on Sunday. The BJP and JD(U)—the two key senior partners of the NDA—agreed to contest an equal number of seats, 101 each. Of the remaining 41 seats, 29 have been allocated to LJP (RV), and six each to HAM and RLM.
What struck many after closely analysing the formula was that the BJP had made a very smart political move by agreeing to contest the same number of seats as the JD(U) with 101 each.
Soon after the arrangement was announced by BJP Bihar in-charge Dharmendra Pradhan on his X handle, political analysts termed it a “gateway” to the next power move for the BJP, should the JD(U) once again win fewer seats but still insist on retaining the Chief Minister’s post, as was the case in the 2020 Assembly elections.
In 2020, the JD(U) contested 115 seats but managed to win only 43 – emerging as a junior partner. Ironically, despite its reduced status in terms of seat count, the CM post remained with the JDU, under Nitish Kumar, largely due to the BJP lacking a leader of matching stature to take on the role.
At that time, Nitish Kumar had offered the opportunity for the BJP to announce a Chief Ministerial candidate, but the BJP, playing a shrewd political card, waited for a better opportunity. That moment seems to have arrived this year in Assembly elections with both the JDU and BJP contesting an equal number of seats.
Senior political observers said, “BJP has opened a way to come into power through this formula. If JD(U) bags less number of seats than BJP, it may put a toss to change the CM.”
However, the BJP leaders denied it and saying it will fight under Nitish Kumar leadership. The LJP (RV) has emerged as an unavoidable ally for the NDA, ultimately securing 29 seats — the third highest among the alliance partners — despite initially demanding 45.
For the BJP, which is focused on ensuring the stability and longevity of the Modi government at the Centre, there was little choice but to concede to the LJP’s demands, albeit in a revised form: granting it 29 seats instead of 45.
