The three by-elections in Bihar, one for Araria lok Sabha and two for Jehanabad and Bhabua Assembly seats, took an interesting turn with the RJD succumbing to the pressure of its ally Congress and JD(U) changing its stand of not contesting polls following insistence by the BJP.
The picture is now clear. The RJD will contest Araria lS, falling vacant due to death of its senior leader Mohammad Taslimuddin, and Jehanabad Assembly seat, which its leader Mundrika Singh Yadav had won in 2015 and died recently. Yielding before the pressure and stiff stand of the Congress, the RJD decided to leave Bhabua seat to it. The BJP will fight Araria, where it stood second in 2014, and Bhabua as its MlA Anand Bhushan Pandey passed away.
NDA’s two other allies - RlSP of Union Minister Upendra Kushwaha and Hindustani Awam Morcha of Jitan Ram Manjhi - were staking claims on Jehanabad seat. Kushwaha wanted this seat as its candidate was runner-up in the last Assembly polls but Manjhi insisted the seat should be allotted to him since he has a strong base there.
Even as all the parties of both NDA and Mahagathbandhan were staking claim and countering each other, JD(U) surprised all by announcing to keep away from by-polls. Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, who also heads the party, declared that none of three seats belonged to his party neither it stood second in general elections. He also reiterated that his party has a policy not to fight by-polls the seats falling vacant due to death of sitting representatives.
But the BJP changed the picture in one stroke. First a disappointed Manjhi withdrew his claim after getting no response from BJP and then the saffron party turned down stake of Kushwaha. State BJP chief Nityanand Rai and Deputy CM Sushil Kumar Modi on Saturday publicly urged Nitish to contest Jehanabad seat.
Nitish after consulting senior leaders of his party gestured just before leaving for Japan on Sunday by extending blessings to Abhiram Sharma, a former JD(U) MlA from Jehanabad, at the airport. Once Nitish left, the party announced Sharma as its candidate. In 2015 Assembly election Nitish had surrendered this seat to RJD even when the JD(U) was holding it.
JD(U) spokesman Dr Sunil Kumar Singh admitted that his party honoured the desire of the BJP to contest by-poll. He said since his party was busy in organizational works and in spreading its social reform message it had decided to keep away from three by-polls apart from the fact that none of the seats belonged to JD(U).
But leader of opposition Tejashwi Prasad Yadav made fun of the both the decisions of the JD(U), first not contesting then changing its stand, and took potshots at Nitish.
First he said that the JD(U) was scared of fighting polls as the party had no courage to face people. Now he alleged that Nitish has mortgaged hios party to the BJP and just doing what the saffron party was asking it to do only to remain in power. JD(U) spokesman Singh retaliated, “Yadav better look at his own home and take some lessons from the heaps of corruption cases his father, mother, sisters, brother-in-law and himself in which they are neck deep involved.”