2019 polls: Cong, RLD discuss tieup with LJP, RSLP

New Delhi: The Rashtriya Janata Dal and the Congress have begun to “broadly” discuss the strategy for next year’s Lok Sabha elections as well as the Assembly polls which are scheduled shortly thereafter.

Sources said that though no talks have yet been held on seat-sharing, the two parties are putting their heads together on whether bringing more parties on board the Grand Alliance was a good idea.

At the meeting between Congress president Rahul Gandhi and RJD leader and former Bihar deputy chief minister Tejashvi Yadav on Thursday, which was also attended by Bihar in-charge of Congress Shaktisinh Gohil, the talks veered on NDA partners like Lok Janashakti Party led by Ramvilas Paswan and Upendra Kushwaha-led RLSP and whether it was a good idea to induct them in case the situation so arises.

“It is a cordial alliance unlike the NDA and the discussions were broadly on the Lok Sabha polls though there were no seat-sharing talks,” a senior leader of the Bihar Congress told this newspaper.

Interestingly, the talks between the two were held on the day of the dinner meeting of NDA constituents in Bihar, where Mr Kushwaha was conspicuous with his absence.

There have been grumblings within the NDA in Bihar with even JD(U) chief Nitish Kumar giving many hints of his uneasiness with the BJP recently, which includes replacing the Prime Minister’s crop insurance scheme and criticising demonetisation, more than a year after he had praised it. It might be recalled that Mr Kumar had switched sides and joined the NDA after having won the Assembly polls as a part of the Congress-RJD-JD(U) Grand Alliance in 2015.

“If Nitish Kumar or Mr Paswan remain in the NDA then they will lose. Nitish wont be able to damage us. He has lost secular vote. He will get Kurmi votes, but not the secular votes,” the Congress leader said.

The call on new parties on board, however, rested with Mr Yadav, as the RJD was the senior alliance partner being the larger party in the state, sources said, adding that as of now, the Congress was focused on strengthening its own organisation in the state.  

Though Mr Yadav seemed to be open to the idea of inclusion Mr Paswan’s LJP or Mr Kushwaha’s RSLP if such a situation arises, he was not in favour of taking Mr Kumar-led JD(U) back in “Mahagathbandhan’s” fold.

Both Mr Kumar and Mr Yadav have taken potshots at each other with the latter even branding the Bihar chief minister as a “turncoat”.