CONGRESS BACKS TEJASHWI, ENDING RIFT IN BIHAR MAHAGATHBANDHAN

In a dramatic pre-poll turnaround, Congress on Thursday named RJD's Tejashwi Yadav as the Mahagathbandhan's Chief Ministerial face, ending weeks of rift and setting up a direct clash with the NDA in Bihar.

- AJIT MAINDOLA/ABHINANDAN MISHRA

In a decisive shift ahead of the Bihar Assembly Lelections, the Congress on Thursday formally named Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader Tejashwi Yadav as the Chief Ministerial face of the Mahagathbandhan, marking a rare departure from its longheld tradition of contesting elections without projecting a leader. The decision, announced by senior Congress leader and AICC election observer Ashok Gehlot in Patna, ended weeks of uncertainty and friction within the Opposition bloc and set the stage for a direct, high-voltage contest with the ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA). Vikassheel Insaan Party (VIP) chief Mukesh Sahani was also declared the alliance's Deputy Chief Ministerial nominee.

The announcement, coming just a fortnight before the first phase of polling on 6 November, followed tense negotiations over seatsharing and leadership.

The Congress leadership had initially resisted naming Tejashwi, arguing that a "no-face" strategy would broaden the alliance's appeal beyond the RJD's traditional Muslim-Yadav base.

However, insiders revealed that the deadlock pushed the alliance to the brink of collapse until Congress matriarch Sonia Gandhi intervened. After consultations with party chief Mallikarjun Kharge and Rahul Gandhi, it was agreed that the party's position in Bihar required a tactical course correction.

Rahul Gandhi entrusted the task to Ashok Gehlot, the former Rajasthan Chief Minister known for his crisis-management skills.

Upon his arrival in Patna, Gehlot met with RJD chief Lalu Prasad Yadav, his son Tejashwi, and other alliance partners. Within 24 hours, he had stitched together a compromise, announcing Tejashwi as the CM face and Sahani as Deputy CM, and offering symbolic accommodation to the Left allies by promising ministerial representation if the alliance came to power.