Even as BJP braces for high-stake Bihar polls with party president Amit Shah reaching Patna on a two-day visit from June 20 to have first-hand feed-back from the party workers, Union Minister Ananth Kumar was on Friday put in charge of election of the BJP in the State. The State unit of Bihar has been asked to work out seat adjustment formula with the NDA allies. “Bihar unit has the decisive say in seat sharing strategy,” said Central leaders.
On BJP projecting Chief Ministerial candidate, they said the decision would be taken by the party’s Parliamentary Board, the highest decision making body of the BJP. NDA seeks to win around 185 plus in the Bihar polls, according to sources, who maintained that the otherwise arch political rivals in Bihar have come together on account of ‘fear’ of the BJP.
BJP-led NDA alliance has a tough task ahead in election against the RJD-JD(U)-Congress alliance, which has declared Nitish Kumar as its chief ministerial candidate. In a shot in the arm for the BJP, former JD(U) leader and a fierce opponent of Nitish Kumar, Jitan Ram Manjhi on Thursday announced a tie-up with it. Ram Vilas Paswan’s lJP and Union Minister Upendra Prasad Kushwaha-led RlSP are the other allies of BJP in the State. Ananth Kumar, a six-time MP and close to party veteran lK Advani, has held key organisational posts in the party and played a crucial role in several election campaigns. Kumar will be assisted by another Union Minister, Dharmendra Pradhan, a former in-charge of party affairs in Bihar, and who has been made co-in-charge of the elections by party president. BJP leaders have admitted that joining of hands by former Janta Parivar leaders - lalu Prasad and Nitish Kumar- has made party’s task “harder” in a crucial assembly polls.