Rift in RJD-LJP alliance over Purnia bypoll

Rift surfaces in the RJD-LJP combine after seven months of the alliance suffering.

Rift surfaces in the RJD-LJP combine after seven months of the alliance suffering serious drubbing at the hands of ruling NDA in Assembly polls in Bihar,with the two parties failing to reach an agreement on supporting the candidate for the Purnia Assembly bypoll.

Both the RJD and LJP decided against contesting the bypoll and have rather decided to support a secular candidate keeping in mind the winnability factor.

Souring relations between the two opposition parties in Bihar surfaced yesterday with the RJD leaders Ramchandra Purve and Abdul Bari Siddiqui unilaterally announcing to support the CPI-M nominee Amit Sarkar,son of slain CPI-M MLA Ajit Sarkar,in the June 25 bypoll to Purnia Assembly constituency.

Leader of the Opposition Abdul Bari Siddiqui said that RJD’s decision to support the CPI-M candidate was solely a party decision and efforts to contact the LJP leadership on

the issue had proved futile.

“We have had no talks with LJP chief Ram Vilas Paswan on the issue,” he said. Siddiqui said the party’s decision to support the CPI-M was taken to check a division of secular votes in the bypolls in a bid to defeat the NDA nominee.

However,the RJD’s bid to check the division of secular votes might not fructify as its alliance partner LJP is apparently keen on supporting the Congress candidate,Ram Charitra Yadav who bagged 40000 votes in the last polls and if that happens it would be a signal of the LJP closing in with the Congress in the coming days.

State LJP president Pashupati Kumar Paras when contacted,said his party was in talks with the Congress on supporting the latter’s candidate.

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“Our aim is to defeat the NDA and therefore,we want to support a candidate who is strong. We feel the Congress’ candidate has fared well in comparison to the CPI-M candidate who drew only 23000 votes,” Paras said,adding the party will take a decision soon.

In-charge of Congress affairs in Bihar,Gulchain Singh Charak on Thursday announced that his party had decided to fight the bypoll on its own.

While replying to a question as to whether his party would seek the support of RJD-LJP combine for the by-election,Charak had said,”The secular parties should understand that the Congress is the lone alternative in the bypoll and should support its nominee.”

The RJD-LJP combine has not put up its candidate for the seat and said it would support a candidate from a secular party.

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The bypoll to Purnia Assembly constituency has been necessitated following the killing of ruling BJP MLA Raj Kishore Keshri allegedly by a woman at his residence in Purnia on January 4,2011.

While the BJP has fielded Keshri’s widow Kiran,the Congress has put up Ramcharitra Yadav as its candidate. Other candidates in the fray include CPI(M)’s Amit Sarkar and Islamuddin of CPI-ML.

NDA had charged the RJD-LJP combine of entering into a tacit understanding with the Congress that forced the combine not to put up a candidate.