Bihar assembly polls: Jitan Ram Manjhi meets PM Narendra Modi, but ‘tie-up’ still faces many roadblocks

Even as Manjhi did not get any “solid assurance” from the Prime Minister and merely said he had some “political talks”, the Mahadalit leader at least appeared positive, with HAM spokesperson Danish Rizwan telling The Indian Express that “our discussion with BJP is very positive”.

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Later, a BJP leader said: “Manjhi was here to meet the Prime Minister and talk about the failures of Nitish Kumar’s government in Bihar. He wanted to show that the government there is not functioning.”

The former CM also brought up the issue of NDA’s prospective chief ministerial candidate in Bihar, sources said. He, however, was told that it’s too early to discuss the matter.

There has been no word on the seat-sharing despite a series of discussions recently between HAM and the Bihar unit of BJP.

BJP state president Mangal Pandey, however, reciprocated warmly to Manjhi’s vibes after his meeting with the PM.

“BJP had stood by Manjhi during his ouster as CM. We will welcome Manjhi in NDA for development of Bihar.”

Manjhi had formed HAM after he was forced to step down as chief minister following a feud with the JD(U) leadership, particularly Nitish Kumar. He has been keen on forging an electoral alliance with BJP, which is preparing itself for a crucial battle against the combined forces of JD(U), RJD, Congress and others.

Although some BJP leaders admit that Manjhi joining hands with NDA can help tap Mahadalit votebank — considered to be 12-13 per cent of the state’s total population, a large section of the party looks at him as an “unreliable” ally. The former CM has already sent feelers to RJD and its leader Lalu Prasad, whose response was largely positive.

Another roadblock in the BJP-HAM alliance would be Manjhi’s demand for contesting 50 seats in the elections to the 243-member Assembly. BJP’s partners in NDA — Upendra Kushwaha’s Rashtriya Lok Samata Party and Ram Vilas Paswan’s Lok Jan Shakti Party — have already demanded their share. The BJP, which has set a mission of 182 seats, wants to contest around 200 seats.

Asked about the possibilities of any pre-poll alliance, Manjhi told reporters at Bihar Niwas in New Delhi that he would partner with any formation that does not include Nitish Kumar. Asked about Lalu Prasad’s overtures to him to join the “grand alliance”, which is likely to include Kumar, he said a tie-up between Prasad and Kumar is unlikely to work as RJD voters would not support Kumar and the JD(U) leader has a small voter base.

“If there is a need to ally with any party following the election, I will go with a formation which does not include Nitish Kumar,” he said.