MAHAGATHBANDHAN SEAT SHARING ALMOST FINAL

RJD, Congress, Left, and new allies seat allocation before poll announcement.

- ANAND SINGH NEW DELHI/PATNA

Even as the Election Commission of India (ECI) is all set to announce the poll dates for the high-octane Bihar Assembly election in the first week of October, the Mahagatbandhan or Grand Alliance is preparing to finalise the seat-sharing deal in the coming days despite some hard bargaining from partners.

Sources indicated that the seat-sharing talks are entering the final stage, with most parties working on the number of seats they plan to contest.

The Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), Congress, and the Left parties, which formed the Mahagatbandhan in Bihar in the last Assembly polls, had contested on 144, 70, and 29 seats respectively. A top RJD source said all parties now need to accommodate the new alliance partners in the form of Mukesh Sahni-led Vikashsheel Insan Party (VIP), Pashupatinath Paras-led LJP, and others.

The sources said that the seat-sharing talks are expected to be complete by the first week of October and announced jointly by the senior leadership of all parties.