RLSP leader Upendra Khushwaha, miffed at the possibility of fewer seats for his party, questions BJP ‘partiality’ towards JD(U).
New Delhi: The Bharatiya Janata Party’s move to placate the Janata Dal (United), by offering the Nitish Kumar-led party an equal number of Lok Sabha seats in Bihar, appears to have miffed another NDA ally in the state, the Upendra Kushwaha-led Rashtriya Lok Samata Party (RLSP).
On Tuesday, addressing the media after meeting with BJP general secretary Bhupender Yadav, the RLSP chief Upendra Kushwaha said he had questioned Yadav about the BJP’s partiality towards the JD(U).
“In a coalition, allies share losses and gains equally. If that is the case, why were we not considered when the JD(U) formed the government?” he asked. “Talks are ongoing. I will meet (LJP chief) Ram Vilas Paswan today as well.”
Sources said Kushwaha, a Union minister in the Narendra Modi cabinet, is unhappy with the new seat-sharing arrangement, as it will mean fewer seats for the RLSP.
Apprehending a crisis, the BJP deputed general secretary Bhupendra Yadav to reach out to an angry Kushwaha. BJP sources said Yadav held extensive talks Tuesday and assured Kushwaha that the RLSP’s political well-being would be taken care of.
The meeting came in the wake of BJP president Amit Shah also having spoken to the RLSP chief over the phone.
Also read: 4 reasons Amit Shah has been so generous to Nitish Kumar in seat-sharing in Bihar
RLSP could end up with fewer seats
Kushwaha’s anger appears to stem from rumours that the RLSP may be given just two Parliamentary seats in Bihar.
Speculation is rife that under the current formula, of the 40 Lok Sabha seats in Bihar, the BJP and JD(U) would get 16 each while six may go to the Ram Vilas Paswan-led LJP, with the remaining two going to the RLSP.
If it does end up with just two seats, it will be a climb-down for the RLSP, which contested in and won three seats in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections.
The RLSP, sources in the BJP said, is adamant that it be allocated at least four Lok Sabha seats. It has pointed out that the JD(U) had won just two Parliamentary seats in the 2014 elections.
The party holds sway over the Kushwahas, a farming community that is approximately 8 per cent of the total population in the state. They are the fourth largest demographic group after Muslims, Dalits and Yadavs.
Also read: BJP’s Bihar ally unhappy with Amit Shah, doesn’t want Nitish as CM face
Unhappy over JD(U), may quit NDA
Sources said Kushwaha had been unhappy with the entry of the JD(U) into the NDA fold last year. He has also been expressing his unease at the seat-sharing negotiations for months now.
Sources also said that Kushwaha met Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader Tejashwi Yadav on the day Shah and Nitish Kumar announced that both will contest on an equal number of seats.
The Union minister has also been making noises about quitting the NDA. He caused a stir in the alliance two months ago with his controversial kheer remark.
“Yaduvanshiyon ka dhoodna aur kushwanshio ka chawal mil jaaye to kheer ban sakti hai. Kheer me liye choti jaati aur dave kuchle samaj ka panchmeva bhi chahiye. Tab kheer kaisa swadishta vyanjan ban sakta hai. Milk from Yadav and rice from Kushwahas and dry fruits from backward classes if mixed will produce delicious kheer),” he had then said.
The remarks were welcomed by Tejashwi Yadav but Kushwaha later said he never meant his comments in a political context.
Other BJP allies, however, believe that had he been willing to exit, Kushwaha would have done that by now. “We all have sacrificed seats for the JD(U), so why can’t he? I think Kushwaha is posturing,” said an LJP leader.