Patna: Patna: It’s finally official: RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav will be the Opposition’s chief ministerial candidate of Bihar.
If that was on expected lines, the naming of Vikasheel Insaan Party (VIP) chief Mukesh Sahani as the deputy CM face was more interesting.
The announcements were made at a joint press conference by INDIA bloc parties on Thursday, after weeks of deliberations and differences.
Former Rajasthan CM Ashok Gehlot informed there will be a few more deputy CMs if the Mahagatbandhan wins next month’s Assembly elections. Voting will take place on November 6 and 11, while the counting will take place on November 14.
“All allies in the INDIA bloc, including our leader Rahul Gandhi, have unanimously decided that Tejashwi Yadav will be our CM face, and we will contest the elections unitedly. Mukesh Sahani will be the deputy CM face, and there will be a few more deputy CMs representing other communities if we form the government,” Gehlot announced, in the presence of Tejashwi, Sahani, CPI (ML) Liberation general secretary Dipankar Bhattacharya, and representatives of CPI, CPM, and Indian Inclusive Party (IIP).
Gehlot said he held discussions with RJD chief Lalu Prasad, Tejashwi, and other alliance partners to resolve internal disputes over multiple nominations in at least ten constituencies, where the Congress, RJD, and CPI candidates have filed papers, resulting in “friendly fights”.
Gehlot also challenged the BJP and JD(U)-led NDA to declare their chief ministerial candidate after Union Home minister Amit Shah said recently MLAs would decide the CM after the elections.
The spotlight was supposed to be on Tejashwi, but it was Sahani who hogged the limelight.
The 44-year-old Sahani’s elevation in the Mahagatbandhan ranks is very significant as he represents the Extremely Backward Class (EBC), which constitutes almost 30 per cent of Bihar’s electorate.
Clearly, the Opposition’s choice is a calculated one to reach out further to backward and marginalised communities.
The ‘deal’, however, didn’t come easily.
Sahani’s party VIP nearly walked out of the Mahagathbandhan after expressing dissatisfaction with the seat-sharing arrangement, according to PTI. VIP stayed on board only after Congress leader Rahul Gandhi intervened.
Born on March 31, 1981 in Supaul district into a fisherman family, Sahani’s has enjoyed modest success in elections. However, he is considered a leader with wide-reaching influence over voters across constituencies.
Once a BJP ally, Sahani on Thursday vowed, “BJP ko jab tak hum todenge nahi, tab tak chhoddenge nahi. (We will not let go until we break the BJP).”
He moved away from the NDA after accusing BJP of “splitting” his party and “luring away” its MLAs.
“BJP broke our party and poached our MLAs. At that time, we had pledged with Ganga jal in our hands. The time has come. Standing strong with Mahagathbandhan, we will form our government in Bihar and oust the BJP from the state,” Sahani thundered after being named deputy CM candidate.