NDA announces Bihar seat-sharing pact: BJP, JD(U) to contest 17 Lok Sabha seats each, LJP gets six

Patna (Bihar): The National Democratic Alliance (NDA) leaders of Bihar on Sunday announced the seat-sharing deal in Bihar for theseven-phased Lok Sabha elections, scheduled to be held in April.

Speaking at a press conference, Bihar JD(U) chief president Vashisht Narain Singh said the BJP will contest on Patliputra, Patna Sahib, Arrah, East Champaran, West Champaran, Sheohar, Madhubani, Darbhanga, Muzaffarpur, Maharajganj, Saran, Buxar, Sasaram, Begusarai, Araria, Aurangabad and Ujiyarpur parliamentary constituencies.

Furthermore, Singh said the JD(U) will contest on Purnia, Madhepura, Supaul, Kishanganj, Katihar, Siwan, Balmiki Nagar, Jhanjharpur, Sitamarhi, Gaya, Gopalganj, Munger, Banka, Bhagalpur, Nalanda , Karakat and Jahanabad Lok Sabha seats.

“LJP will fight on six seats - Hajipur, Vaishali, Samastipur, Jamui, Nawada and Khagadia,” he added.

The formula of seat-sharing was announced a few months ago in Delhi jointly by BJP president Amit Shah, JD(U) national president Nitish Kumar and LJP founder Ram Vilas Paswan.

According to the NDA seat-sharing formula, the BJP and the JD(U) will contest 17 seats each, while the remaining six would be fought by the LJP.

Bihar will see polling in seven phases. The dates of polling in Bihar are - 11, 18, 23, 29 April and 6, 12 and 19 May. The counting of votes will take place on 23 May.

In the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) won only four seats and the Congress two. JD(U), which contested separately, won two seats.

The BJP-led NDA won 31 seats, with the former’s tally being 22.