Bihar alliance reworks campaign focus, targeting Nitish government while managing internal rifts.
New Delhi: Congress and RJD are set to change their strategy for the Bihar elections. If sources are to be believed, issues like SIR and vote theft will now be discussed less in speeches. Under the new approach, the Bihar government will be the main target, with focus on corruption, inflation, unemployment, and concerns of youth and farmers. More announcements are also likely to woo women voters.
Sources said that several rallies will be jointly organised by Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi and RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav. However, there is tension between the two parties over some issues and seats. But both have little option except to fight together.
The RJD is not happy with the video released on social media regarding Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s mother. Experts believe that Tejashwi Yadav is more popular in Bihar than other local leaders, but Rahul Gandhi brought him into competition by targeting Prime Minister Modi during the Voter Rights Yatra. After the remark on Modi’s mother, the election has become centered around the Prime Minister—exactly what the BJP wanted.
If negative comments against Modi continue in the campaign, BJP and JD(U) are confident of a strong comeback. It is almost certain that the BJP will make the “mother” issue a central theme in Bihar elections. A door-to-door campaign is already underway. Seeing this strategy of the BJP, the RJD was compelled to alter its approach along with Congress. Under the revised plan, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar will be a bigger target.
RJD’s main concern is that Rahul Gandhi and other Congress leaders could inadvertently help the BJP by making controversial statements during the campaign. The Voter Rights Yatra had already weakened the SIR issue, since neither party could produce a single case of vote cutting. The matter of vote theft also failed to gain traction. Still, Rahul Gandhi continues to press on the issue while RJD tries to distance itself. It remains to be seen whether Rahul Gandhi relents during the campaign.
There is also no consensus on projecting Tejashwi Yadav as the chief ministerial face. Congress feels that declaring him CM candidate could alienate other caste groups, and hence avoids the announcement. Seat-sharing negotiations too remain unresolved. State in-charge Krishna Alavaru has said Congress will not accept weak seats, while the RJD insists on distributing tickets according to its own plan.
Broad consensus exists on overall seat numbers, but disagreements persist over winnable constituencies. Congress is expected to contest 55 to 60 seats, though the exact list is undecided. The party’s scrutiny committee is currently deliberating on the final seat distribution.
