New Delhi, Oct 26: The BJP and the JD(U) will contest an equal number of seats in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections in Bihar, BJP president Amit Shah said Friday.

Other NDA allies, including the LJP and the RLSP, will get due representation in the seat sharing formula, Shah said.

Addressing reporters along with Bihar Chief Minister and JD(U) leader Nitish Kumar, he said the number of seats each ally will get will be announced in the next three-four days.

Lok Janshakti Party chief Ram Vilas Paswan and Rashtriya Lok Samta Party (RLSP) leader Upendra Khushwaha are firmly with the NDA and their parties will get due representation in seat sharing, the BJP chief said.

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Kollam (Kerala) (PTI): A court here on Thursday granted statutory bail to more accused in two cases related to the alleged gold loss from the Sabarimala temple.

The Kollam Vigilance Court Judge Mohit CS granted bail to Chennai-based Smart Creations CEO Pankaj Bhandari and Ballari-based jeweller Govardhan Roddam in connection with cases involving gold loss from the Dwarapalaka (guardian deity) gold plates and the door frames of the Sreekovil (sanctum sanctorum) at the temple.

The duo was granted bail in both cases after the Special Investigation Team (SIT) failed to file charge sheets within 90 days of their arrest.

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Pankaj Bhandari is the 12th accused in the Dwarapalaka case and the ninth accused in the Sreekovil door frame case, while Govardhan Roddam is the 13th accused in the Dwarapalaka case and the 10th accused in the Sreekovil door frame case.

With the latest development, as many as 10 accused have now been released from jail after securing bail in the Sabarimala cases.

According to the investigation, the artefacts from Sabarimala were taken to Smart Creations in 2019 for replating, after which the SIT alleged that gold was lost.

Govardhan is also said to be a close associate of the prime accused, Unnikrishnan Potty.

The SIT, following searches at the residences and offices of the accused, had recovered gold allegedly equivalent to the reported losses from Sabarimala.

The SIT has informed the Kerala High Court that charge sheets in the cases will be filed before the end of March.