All NDA candidates in Bihar for Rajya Sabha polls will win by huge margins: JD(U)
Patna (PTI): JD(U) national working president Sanjay Kumar Jha asserted that all NDA candidates in Bihar for the Rajya Sabha polls, including Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, will "win by huge margins".
Jha made the assertion on Saturday, ahead of the March 16 polls.
Six candidates -- five from the ruling NDA and one from the opposition -- are in the fray for five Rajya Sabha seats in Bihar. Among those contesting are Kumar and BJP national president Nitin Nabin.
Speaking to reporters after a meeting with Deputy Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary, Jha said, "We don't know what opposition leaders are claiming about the outcome of Rajya Sabha polls in Bihar... Let me make it very clear that all NDA candidates in the Rajya Sabha polls will win by huge margins."
The NDA alliance partners in Bihar on Saturday held separate meetings with their respective MLAs to discuss the strategy ahead of the polls.
While the state BJP's core committee meeting was held at the party office in Patna, Union minister Chirag Paswan's LJP (RV) also called a separate meeting of its MLAs. Union minister Harsh Malhotra and Chhattisgarh Deputy Chief Minister Vijay Sharma, who are central observers for the Rajya Sabha polls in Bihar, were present in both meetings.
Another such meeting took place at the residence of Rashtriya Lok Morcha (RLM) chief Upendra Kushwaha in the state capital. Kushwaha, an NDA candidate, is seeking a second consecutive term in the Upper House of Parliament.
Speaking to reporters after the BJP's state core committee meeting, Bihar minister Dilip Jaiswal, said, "The meeting was called to train newly elected party MLAs about voting in the Rajya Sabha polls."
Another crucial meeting of all NDA MLAs will be held at the official residence of senior JD(U) leader and Bihar Parliamentary Affairs Minister Vijay Kumar Choudhary in the state capital on Sunday.
Besides Nabin and Kumar, other NDA candidates in the fray are Union minister Ram Nath Thakur of the JD(U), who aims at a hat-trick, Kushwaha, and BJP state general secretary Shivesh Kumar, a former MLA, hoping to make his debut in Parliament.
RJD's Amarendra Dhari Singh, an MP and businessman-turned-politician, is also in the fray. The RJD held two of the five Rajya Sabha seats in Bihar for which polls are being held. But in view of its decimation in the 2025 assembly polls, where it managed only 25 seats, the RJD chose to contest only one seat.
The NDA enjoys a brute majority in the assembly, though its tally of 202 in the 243-member House falls three short of the number needed to secure all five Rajya Sabha seats.
To win a Rajya Sabha seat, one needs the support of at least 41 MLAs in the 243-member Bihar Assembly.
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Kharge calls NDA ‘opportunist alliance thriving on corruption’ at rally
Puducherry (PTI): Senior Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge on Saturday said the NDA "is an opportunist alliance that thrives on corruption and the looting of public assets".
Addressing a rally of the INDIA bloc in Puducherry, the Congress president said Prime Minister Narendra Modi "had done nothing" for the union territory’s development.
He urged voters to back the INDIA bloc in the April 9 Assembly polls, calling it "an opportunity for the people to fight against divisive forces led by the BJP and RSS, which are destroying unity, harmony, and the progressive spirit of Puducherry."
Kharge also criticised the BJP for neglecting smaller states like Puducherry and made a strong case for granting it statehood, promising, "Congress will secure statehood—this is a guarantee we give to the people here".
He alleged that under the current AINRC-BJP coalition, Puducherry is "riddled with corruption and a 30 per cent commission system," with the NDA government exploiting the union territory, despite it being "one of the country’s most beautiful places".
He expressed concern over "misuse of funds and stalled development", alleging corruption had "seeped into every sector".
Kharge claimed that despite Prime Minister Modi’s zero-tolerance stance on corruption, "everything in practice is being handed to one person, Adani—from land to skies."
He added that the NDA was "exploiting land, temple lands, and public property."
The Congress leader also criticised the AINRC-BJP rule for granting permits for around 450 liquor shops and restaurants over the last five years, claiming, "Instead of providing clean water, the government has been giving liquor to the people."
Kharge compared the current situation with the previous Congress rule, highlighting development across sectors, particularly healthcare. "Hospitals were established here to take care of the health of the people," he said.
Among his promises, Kharge pledged "gold for mangala sutra" for women if Congress is elected, along with free education from primary school to research level.
He reiterated that Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s promises to Puducherry had not materialised and renewed his call for full statehood, citing the lack of powers as a "hindrance" to the elected government.
He recalled that during the previous Congress rule, then Chief Minister V Narayanasamy, who was also present, faced interference from then Lt Governor Kiran Bedi.
Kharge said Congress has always stood with the people and would continue to improve their lives through developmental programmes, as it had during earlier administrations.
The meeting was presided over by Puducherry PCC president V Vaithilingam, and among the speakers was S P Sivakumar of the DMK.
