The Mahagathbandhan is scheduled to address a press conference in Patna later in the day during which they are likely to announce Tejashwi Yadav as their chief ministerial candidate for the Bihar assembly elections next month.
Even as the seat-sharing dispute within the Mahagathbandhan continues, the alliance has reportedly reached a consensus to project RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav as its chief ministerial candidate for the upcoming Bihar Assembly elections,sources said. The announcement is likely to be made at alliance press conference in Patna later in the day.
A big hint on Tejashwi being the CM face was dropped after the presser’s poster featured the sole image of the RJD leader. RJD insiders said all constituents of the Mahagathbandhan have agreed to back Tejashwi’s leadership. The alliance will launch its campaign under the slogan “Chalo Bihar, Badlein Bihar” (“Let’s go to Bihar, Let’s change Bihar”). The poster also featured a Bihar wants Tejashwi sarkar hashtag.
The development comes on the final day for withdrawal of nominations, after days of negotiations that extended until the last moment.
Ashok Gehlot meets Lalu Yadav, Tejashwi
In a final effort to resolve the impasse, senior Congress leader and former Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot arrived in Patna on Wednesday to mediate among alliance partners.
Upon his arrival, Gehlot met RJD chief Lalu Prasad Yadav and his son Tejashwi Yadav in an attempt to ease tensions within the coalition, which includes the RJD, Congress, and several smaller parties, and has been struggling to reach an agreement on around a dozen seats.
“We had a good discussion with Lalu ji and Tejashwi Yadav. There is a press conference on Thursday, and everything will be clear. We are going to contest strongly against the NDA. Rahul Gandhi and Tejashwi Yadav will start the election campaign together. There are 243 seats in Bihar, and at times, there can be a friendly fight on 5-7 seats. We will campaign together and win the elections,” Gehlot told media after the meeting.
