With just 31 hours to go for the nomination deadline for the first phase of the Bihar Assembly polls, the opposition bloc Mahagathbandhan is staring at a possible exit.
Mukesh Sahani, the chief of the Vikassheel Insaan Party, has been negotiating hard for a good deal on seats. Sahani has reportedly demanded at least 24 seats in the election to the 243-member Assembly. Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader Tejashwi Yadav has now put his foot down, sources said, and said VIP can only get around 15 seats. According to insiders, the Mahagathbandhan has made it clear to Sahani that this is the best deal he can get. If the VIP chief climbs down, the Mahagathbandhan may eventually seal the seat deal. If he rebels and exits the alliance, more drama is expected.
According to RJD sources, Sahani’s hard bargaining has now reached a “breaking point” and Tejashwi Yadav has given him an “ultimatum”.
Founded in 2018, VIP has a support base among Bihar’s fishermen and boatmen communities, and Sahani is known for bargaining hard during seat-sharing talks.
In the 2020 Bihar polls, Sahani was initially with the Mahagathbandhan but switched to the NDA after he did not get the number of seats he demanded. As part of the NDA, VIP contested 11 seats and won four. One of its MLAs died, and the other three switched to the BJP. He later parted ways with the NDA.
In the run-up to the Bihar polls, Sahani has been trying to pressure the Mahagathbandhan leadership for a good deal on seats. Earlier this month, he claimed that he would be the Deputy Chief Minister if the Mahagathbandhan came to power in Bihar.
Asked about reports suggesting that his allies are reluctant to accept him as Deputy Chief Minister, he said, “If some people are unwilling to accept Tejashwi Yadav as Chief Minister, does that mean Bihar will function without a Chief Minister? If Tejashwi becomes Chief Minister, I can be the Deputy Chief Minister. The majority determines who takes these positions. The BJP has said I would make a good Deputy Chief Minister, and if the largest party recognises my importance, it proves that wherever Mukesh Sahani goes, that side forms the government.”
Sahani has earlier served as Bihar’s minister for Animal Husbandry and Fisheries in the Nitish Kumar government.