Bihar election

[Sam.]

Mulayam Singh pulls out of Bihar's grand alliance, miffed with Nitish for cosying up to Sonia, Rahul
by Ajay Singh Sep 4, 2015 07:32 IST

• 
  
• Ram Gopal Yadav who attended Nitish Kumar’s Swabhiman rally in Patna on 30 August, announced in a conference in Lucknow on Thursday that his party was parting ways with the JD(U)-RJD-Congress Mahagathbandhan.
  
  Although there may be attempts by the SP to renegotiate political space among its former partners in the coalition in the coming days, the damage to the anti-BJP Mahagathbandhan in Bihar will be irreparable. The genesis of this trouble lies in the fact that Nitish invited Congress president Sonia Gandhi to the Patna rally.
  
  
  
  
  Mulayam Singh Yadav. PTI
  
  Ram Gopal Yadav is believed to have conveyed his displeasure to Kumar over his continued overtures to Sonia-Rahul, at the expense of other allies who actually have socialist backgrounds. Apparently SP chief Mulayam Singh Yadav did not attend the rally ostensibly to express his reservation over the show, and sent his brother Ram instead to represent the SP.
  
  However the coalition's show of strength at the rally also exposed its own political vulnerabilities.
  
  Lalu Yadav’s barbs at Sonia and Nitish did not go unnoticed in the audience. In this context, Mulayam Singh Yadav’s decision to go it alone in the Assembly polls is a calculated strategy to pin down Nitish, who has projected himself as the sole leader of the coalition.
  
  The adverse electoral impact of Mulayam’s decision will be felt most by Nitish.
  
  Although the SP does not have a large support base in the state, party candidates can wean away some votes in the districts adjoining Uttar Pradesh. And there is also the possibility that the SP will not erode the RJD’s electoral base, and instead hurt the prospects of the JD(U) candidates. Given the family relations that Lalu and Mulayam have, the immediate target seems to be Nitish, who is practically hemmed in.
  
  Those who watched Mulayam switching sides at his convenience will find a great deal of consistency in his conduct. Under the UPA regime, Mulayam developed a cosy relationship with the government and bailed it out on many occasions, particularly on the India-US nuclear deal. Now, the SP supremo is believed to have developed an equally comfortable personal relationship with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, which is precisely why the SP supported External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj, when she found herself embroiled in the Lalit Modi episode.
  
  If insiders within the SP are to be believed, Mulayam has been nursing a grudge against Nitish since the time the JD (U) chief began to get along well with Rahul Gandhi. Nitish, then, even considered the option of forging an alliance with the Congress alone. Although Mulayam defused the situation back then by declaring Nitish as the alliance's chief ministerial candidate, he chose to bide his time and pick his moment to strike back.
  

Mulayam Singh pulls out of Bihar's grand alliance, miffed with Nitish for cosying up to Sonia, Rahul - Firstpost

@Skull and Bones @Spectre @magudi @Rain Man @gslv mk3

Lets talk about more important things in India rather than troll threads as our economic success depends on it.

 

[Sam.]

Bihar elections: To get majority on its own, BJP wants to contest 160 seats
Although a meeting was held between BJP chief Amit Shah and the allies on August 31, no decision on seat sharing was taken.

Earlier, BJP’s partners — LJP, RLSP and HAM-S — had openly expressed their anger over the delay in announcing the seat-sharing formula.

he BJP has conveyed to its Bihar allies its desire to contest 160 seats based on the rationale that the NDA was fighting the election with PM Narendra Modi as its face. Party sources claimed that the allies had in-principle agreed to the BJP’s demand. “The BJP wants to contest around 160 seats because we should be in a position to win majority on our own. We have conveyed this to our allies and they are convinced,” said a BJP leader. “The election is being fought in Narendra Modi’s name. The BJP has the highest stake in it. We have explained this to the allies and they are aware of it,” said a party source.

Earlier, BJP’s partners — LJP, RLSP and HAM-S — had openly expressed their anger over the delay in announcing the seat-sharing formula. Although a meeting was held between BJP chief Amit Shah and the allies on August 31, no decision on seat sharing was taken. Shah reportedly told all allies to focus on winning instead of bickering over seats. But despite the warning from Shah, former CM and HAM-S leader Jitan Ram Majhi Thursday said he was not ready to accept anything less 13 seats for his party. BJP leaders, however, said recent developments including PM’s Bihar package and Samajwadi Party’s decision to quit the Grand Alliance had made the party’s position stronger, even among its allies. The BJP is also counting on the factor of disappointed ticket seekers in JD(U) and RJD working in its favour. While JD-U contested in 141 seats (and won 115) during the last Assembly election, the RJD had fielded candidates in 168 seats and won 22. However, both parties have agreed to contest 100 seats each in the forthcoming election. “There will be rebels all across the state. So the BJP, which contested only 102 seats last time will have an advantage as it will be contesting more seats now. This factor will help the party in at least 50-70 seats,” said a party leader.

- See more at: Bihar elections: To get majority on its own, BJP wants to contest 160 seats | The Indian Express

@Chanakya's_Chant @Samudra Manthan @Mike_Brando @Abhijeet Sarkar @anant_s

Nitish Kumar's team creates 'Jumla Babu' to take on Narendra Modi during Bihar Assembly elections
As Bihar gets into election mode and politicians miss no chance in taking a pot shot at their rivals, several catchy and interesting slogans along with campaign themes are being conceived to lure the voters. The two main rivals - Janata Dal United-Rashtriya Janata Dal-Congress Mahagathbandhan and Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance - have moved into top gear in the last couple of months and campaigning has picked up across the state even though the Election Commission is yet to announce the dates.

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's campaign team led by Prashant Kishor's Indian People's Action Committee (IPAC) plans to target its rivals by using BJP president Amit Shah's "Chunavi Jumla" (empty election promises), which he used in February 2015 to describe promises made by Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the 2014 Lok Sabha campaign.

While some radio jingles have been released, more will be launched and a website on "Jumla Babu" is also in the making.
#bihar #Bihar Assembly Elections #bihar assembly elections 2015 #bihar polls
Prashant Kishor's IPAC is going out all guns blazing in creating a digital momentum and narrative for the election which is almost a do-or-die for the Bihar Chief Minister who faces a very formidable rival in NDA which had decimated his party during the 2014 Lok Sabha elections. While promoting Nitish Kumar, his vision and his achievements of the last 10 years is the main focus, the team is creating a humorous attack narrative to target BJP's chief campaigner Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who will be projected as "Jumla Babu", as IBNLive has learnt exclusively.

Nitish Kumar, who is Mahagathbandhan's chief ministerial candidate, is using all technological tools available to take on the better equipped, well funded and much more techno savvy NDA in general and BJP in particular. The core campaign team is working at the JDU election war room at 7 Strand Road in Patna to launch a website sometime in the second week of September which will be heavy on video content.



With advances in technology, better internet connection, easy availability of mobile smartphones and a large percentage of voters in the 18-35 age groups, the campaign has taken a new turn. While election campaigns in Bihar are still largely focused on traditional modes with rallies, door-to-door canvassing, caste and community meetings, another battle is being fought with the help of technology.

The concept and character of "Jumla Babu" has been planned and created by IPAC's digital team. With Modi's being a great orator who connects with his audience very easily, Kishor's team has been working hard to pick holes in BJP's campaign and build the character of "Jumla Babu", which was conceptualised after much deliberation.



One of the major campaign focuses of Nitish Kumar is to project the promises Modi made during the 2014 Lok Sabha campaign but which are yet to be fulfilled. Kishor's team is taking on the BJP head on digitally by spinning around what it calls Modi's knack for "flattery via oration" to his knack for making "false promises via oration".

"Other names that were considered for the campaign were "Naya Din Naya Jumla", "Aaj ka Jumla" and "Jumla Man" but the team finally decided to go with "Jumla Babu" after exploring all options with JDU's political leadership as it had a rustic ring to it and could be easily identified in Bihar which is predominantly rural. One of the cues for the character came from Amit Shah's interview where he called certain promises made during the Lok Sabha election campaign as "Chunavi Jumla"," said a senior IPAC member who is working on the concept.

With BJP leadership and Modi targeting Nitish Kumar's track record of 10 years as Bihar CM, the JDU campaign aims to highlight PM's "unrealistic promises" and dilute the credibility as well as authority of his communication.



While the first phase of the digital campaign was launched on Twitter in first week of August during Modi's Gaya rally, the campaign has been planned in five phases of which two are currently active and three will be rolled out in the coming weeks. Apart from Twitter trends, Whatsapp discussions & Facebook conversations, in addition to coming up with funky creative that take the message home, the campaign managers hope that it becomes a topic of discussion during everyday conversation amongst the Bihar voters.

Along with the digital campaign, nine radio jingles that attack PM for questioning Nitish Kumar's DNA have also been launched. These eight radio jingles are "Jumla le lo!!", "Bolne me kya jata hai", "Aap kehte hai Bihar ke DNA me gadbad hai", "Isi Bihar ka DNA lekar", "Isi Bihar Ka DNA lekar", "Bihari DNA", "Isi Bihar ka DNA lekar...", "#Jhansemenaayenge" and #JumlaBabu".

Jumla le lo!!


Bolne me kya jata hai


Aap kehte hai Bihar ke DNA me gadbad hai


Isi Bihar ka DNA lekar


Isi Bihar Ka DNA lekar


Bihari DNA


Isi Bihar ka DNA lekar...


#Jhansemenaayenge


#JumlaBabu


"The campaign's aim is to take Nitish Kumar's message of debunking PM's special Bihar package to the digitally aware voters. Under the "Jumla Babu" campaign the team will collate all promises of Modi ever made and question on the percentage of them implemented, or even initiated. While the campaign has been designed primarily for Bihar elections, but the plan it to take it pan India and to make "Jumla Babu" resonate with Modi," the IPAC member added.

Even as hundreds of BJP's hi-tech Parivartan raths and JDU's Jan Bhagidari Manch raths crisscross the state raising a lot of dust and political heat, the high-voltage battle is also being fought on an entirely new platform whose success will only be judged once election results are out sometime in late November.



Nitish Kumar's team creates 'Jumla Babu' to take on Narendra Modi during Bihar Assembly elections - IBNLive

@GURU DUTT @Manindra @trident2010 @Arun666 @rezangahir

 

[Nilgiri]

Any recent opinion polls done?

 

[GURU DUTT]

Bihar elections: To get majority on its own, BJP wants to contest 160 seats
Although a meeting was held between BJP chief Amit Shah and the allies on August 31, no decision on seat sharing was taken.

Earlier, BJP’s partners — LJP, RLSP and HAM-S — had openly expressed their anger over the delay in announcing the seat-sharing formula.

he BJP has conveyed to its Bihar allies its desire to contest 160 seats based on the rationale that the NDA was fighting the election with PM Narendra Modi as its face. Party sources claimed that the allies had in-principle agreed to the BJP’s demand. “The BJP wants to contest around 160 seats because we should be in a position to win majority on our own. We have conveyed this to our allies and they are convinced,” said a BJP leader. “The election is being fought in Narendra Modi’s name. The BJP has the highest stake in it. We have explained this to the allies and they are aware of it,” said a party source.

Earlier, BJP’s partners — LJP, RLSP and HAM-S — had openly expressed their anger over the delay in announcing the seat-sharing formula. Although a meeting was held between BJP chief Amit Shah and the allies on August 31, no decision on seat sharing was taken. Shah reportedly told all allies to focus on winning instead of bickering over seats. But despite the warning from Shah, former CM and HAM-S leader Jitan Ram Majhi Thursday said he was not ready to accept anything less 13 seats for his party. BJP leaders, however, said recent developments including PM’s Bihar package and Samajwadi Party’s decision to quit the Grand Alliance had made the party’s position stronger, even among its allies. The BJP is also counting on the factor of disappointed ticket seekers in JD(U) and RJD working in its favour. While JD-U contested in 141 seats (and won 115) during the last Assembly election, the RJD had fielded candidates in 168 seats and won 22. However, both parties have agreed to contest 100 seats each in the forthcoming election. “There will be rebels all across the state. So the BJP, which contested only 102 seats last time will have an advantage as it will be contesting more seats now. This factor will help the party in at least 50-70 seats,” said a party leader.

- See more at: Bihar elections: To get majority on its own, BJP wants to contest 160 seats | The Indian Express

@Chanakya's_Chant @Samudra Manthan @Mike_Brando @Abhijeet Sarkar @anant_s

Nitish Kumar's team creates 'Jumla Babu' to take on Narendra Modi during Bihar Assembly elections
As Bihar gets into election mode and politicians miss no chance in taking a pot shot at their rivals, several catchy and interesting slogans along with campaign themes are being conceived to lure the voters. The two main rivals - Janata Dal United-Rashtriya Janata Dal-Congress Mahagathbandhan and Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance - have moved into top gear in the last couple of months and campaigning has picked up across the state even though the Election Commission is yet to announce the dates.

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's campaign team led by Prashant Kishor's Indian People's Action Committee (IPAC) plans to target its rivals by using BJP president Amit Shah's "Chunavi Jumla" (empty election promises), which he used in February 2015 to describe promises made by Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the 2014 Lok Sabha campaign.

While some radio jingles have been released, more will be launched and a website on "Jumla Babu" is also in the making.
#bihar #Bihar Assembly Elections #bihar assembly elections 2015 #bihar polls
Prashant Kishor's IPAC is going out all guns blazing in creating a digital momentum and narrative for the election which is almost a do-or-die for the Bihar Chief Minister who faces a very formidable rival in NDA which had decimated his party during the 2014 Lok Sabha elections. While promoting Nitish Kumar, his vision and his achievements of the last 10 years is the main focus, the team is creating a humorous attack narrative to target BJP's chief campaigner Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who will be projected as "Jumla Babu", as IBNLive has learnt exclusively.

Nitish Kumar, who is Mahagathbandhan's chief ministerial candidate, is using all technological tools available to take on the better equipped, well funded and much more techno savvy NDA in general and BJP in particular. The core campaign team is working at the JDU election war room at 7 Strand Road in Patna to launch a website sometime in the second week of September which will be heavy on video content.



With advances in technology, better internet connection, easy availability of mobile smartphones and a large percentage of voters in the 18-35 age groups, the campaign has taken a new turn. While election campaigns in Bihar are still largely focused on traditional modes with rallies, door-to-door canvassing, caste and community meetings, another battle is being fought with the help of technology.

The concept and character of "Jumla Babu" has been planned and created by IPAC's digital team. With Modi's being a great orator who connects with his audience very easily, Kishor's team has been working hard to pick holes in BJP's campaign and build the character of "Jumla Babu", which was conceptualised after much deliberation.



One of the major campaign focuses of Nitish Kumar is to project the promises Modi made during the 2014 Lok Sabha campaign but which are yet to be fulfilled. Kishor's team is taking on the BJP head on digitally by spinning around what it calls Modi's knack for "flattery via oration" to his knack for making "false promises via oration".

"Other names that were considered for the campaign were "Naya Din Naya Jumla", "Aaj ka Jumla" and "Jumla Man" but the team finally decided to go with "Jumla Babu" after exploring all options with JDU's political leadership as it had a rustic ring to it and could be easily identified in Bihar which is predominantly rural. One of the cues for the character came from Amit Shah's interview where he called certain promises made during the Lok Sabha election campaign as "Chunavi Jumla"," said a senior IPAC member who is working on the concept.

With BJP leadership and Modi targeting Nitish Kumar's track record of 10 years as Bihar CM, the JDU campaign aims to highlight PM's "unrealistic promises" and dilute the credibility as well as authority of his communication.



While the first phase of the digital campaign was launched on Twitter in first week of August during Modi's Gaya rally, the campaign has been planned in five phases of which two are currently active and three will be rolled out in the coming weeks. Apart from Twitter trends, Whatsapp discussions & Facebook conversations, in addition to coming up with funky creative that take the message home, the campaign managers hope that it becomes a topic of discussion during everyday conversation amongst the Bihar voters.

Along with the digital campaign, nine radio jingles that attack PM for questioning Nitish Kumar's DNA have also been launched. These eight radio jingles are "Jumla le lo!!", "Bolne me kya jata hai", "Aap kehte hai Bihar ke DNA me gadbad hai", "Isi Bihar ka DNA lekar", "Isi Bihar Ka DNA lekar", "Bihari DNA", "Isi Bihar ka DNA lekar...", "#Jhansemenaayenge" and #JumlaBabu".

Jumla le lo!!


Bolne me kya jata hai


Aap kehte hai Bihar ke DNA me gadbad hai


Isi Bihar ka DNA lekar


Isi Bihar Ka DNA lekar


Bihari DNA


Isi Bihar ka DNA lekar...


#Jhansemenaayenge


#JumlaBabu


"The campaign's aim is to take Nitish Kumar's message of debunking PM's special Bihar package to the digitally aware voters. Under the "Jumla Babu" campaign the team will collate all promises of Modi ever made and question on the percentage of them implemented, or even initiated. While the campaign has been designed primarily for Bihar elections, but the plan it to take it pan India and to make "Jumla Babu" resonate with Modi," the IPAC member added.

Even as hundreds of BJP's hi-tech Parivartan raths and JDU's Jan Bhagidari Manch raths crisscross the state raising a lot of dust and political heat, the high-voltage battle is also being fought on an entirely new platform whose success will only be judged once election results are out sometime in late November.



Nitish Kumar's team creates 'Jumla Babu' to take on Narendra Modi during Bihar Assembly elections - IBNLive

@GURU DUTT @Manindra @trident2010 @Arun666 @rezangahir

in short Namo is now jumla babu from feku ..... good going

 

[Sam.]

Any recent opinion polls done?

in short Namo is now jumla babu from feku ..... good going

Latest polls

 

[Nilgiri]

I'm liking the LEADtech prediction.

Fingers crossed. I just want to see the face of that backstabber Nitish Kumar and that fat crook laloo when they are thrown out.

Italian waitress lady and the braindead brat reactions are also eagerly awaited.

 

[Sam.]

OROP may not please soldiers fully, but gives BJP ammo ahead of Bihar polls and exposes Cong

Date: September 15, 2013. Venue: Rewari, Haryana. Occasion: First public meeting by the BJP’s Prime Ministerial candidate Narendra Modi. A picture of the Indian Parliament in the backdrop, and a line written in bold above, made it known that this was a rally for ex-servicemen. It was here that Modi made his first public promise, the implementation of a four decade-old demand — One Rank One Pension (OROP).

Date: September 5, 2015. Venue: Conference Hall of Defence Ministry in South Block. Occasion: The announcement of the implementation of OROP. Flanked by the three service chiefs, Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar announced the resolution of an issue that had been agitating Indian Armed Forces personnel, both serving and retired for over 40 years.

Major-General Satbir Singh (left) and Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar (right). IBNLive

This was a big day for veterans — from the rank of jawan to the service chiefs. It was an equally big day for the Modi government and the BJP, as they prepared to deliver their one big promise — a complex issue that has dogged the Modi government since assuming office, and something that successive governments for the past 40 years, including the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government, have failed to deliver on.

The man who made this promise and reiterated his resolve to fulfil it in his Independence Day speech from Red Fort, as also the prime mover for hastening the pace of decision-making in the government, Modi chose to stay in the background, letting his hand-picked defence minister write his name in history. Modi perhaps wanted to send out a message that his government worked as a team, and was not a one-man show as his political rivals and critics allege.

The OROP, as Parrikar stated, will be implemented from 1 July, 2014 — a day after the Modi government presented its first Budget.

There are many who are questioning the timing of this announcement, due in no small part to the fact that the schedule for the Bihar Assembly elections is to be announced on Monday. The OROP, in fact has no direct bearing on the Bihar, unlike Haryana, Punjab, Uttrakhand, Himachal Pradesh and other such states that contribute a much larger percentage of soldiers in the country's armed forces.

However, if a decision and announcement on OROP had been delayed for few more days, the model code of conduct — which will come into effect with the announcement of polls for the Bihar Assembly — would have prevented the Centre from making the announcement until the conclusion of these polls sometime in November. With ex-officers and jawans sitting on dharna at Jantar Mantar for the past 83 days, these are not the optics that the BJP would have wanted to take into an election as critical as Bihar.

The BJP will now have all its guns blazing — praising Modi for jo kaha woh kiya (did what he promised) and taking on the party's political rivals. This will be a major talking point for the BJP from Saturday onwards, particularly as campaigning for the Bihar polls hots up.


Parrikar's statement carefully and cleverly laid the pitch to show not just how seriously the Modi government worked to make the OROP a reality after four decades, but also how cavalier the UPA government had treated the matter.

"In February 2014, the then government stated that OROP would be implemented in 2014-15, but did not specify what OROP would be, how it would be implemented or how much it would cost. An estimated Rs 500 crore provided for OROP in the budget presented in February 2014 by the then government was not based on any thorough analysis. It is pertinent to mention that the then Minister of State for Defence in 2009 had, in reply to a question, informed Parliament that there are administrative, technical and financial difficulties in implementing OROP. It is for these reasons that the present government took some time to fulfill its promise. Prime Minister Modi has on various occasions, reiterated the government's commitment to implement OROP for ex-servicemen under military pension. As stated above, the previous government had estimated that OROP would be implemented with a budget provision of a mere Rs. 500 crore. The reality, however, is that to implement OROP, the estimated cost to the exchequer would be Rs 8,000 to 10,000 crore at present, and will increase further in future," Parrikar said.

The purpose of revealing these figures is evident. Even though the veterans might not be fully satisfied with the deal dealt today, it leaves the Congress with legs to stand on in the issue anymore.

Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi had mocked Modi when the prime minister announced a Rs 1.65 lakh-crore package for Bihar, suggesting that he had announced goodies for the poll-bound state at the cost of veterans. It is now the BJP’s turn to open fire at the Congress. The BJP was on the back foot after its mishandling of the Land Acquisition bill and the continuing logjam over the Goods and Services Tax (GST) bill.

OROP gives the party a chance to score some points in the popular perception war, as also to do something worthwhile for those who risked their lives to let the nation work and sleep in peace.

OROP may not please soldiers fully, but gives BJP ammo ahead of Bihar polls and exposes Cong - Firstpost

 

[Nilgiri]

Modi has also recently clarified that early fauj retirees will be covered under OROP

 

[Sam.]

Nitish Kumar-led alliance’s new worry: MIM could be the spoiler in Bihar
Another spoiler in the region could be the NCP which left the Grand Alliance after being allotted only three seats against its demand for 12.

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar addresses during 69th Independence Day celebration at Gandhi Maidan in Patna on Saturday. (Source: PTI)

Spelling fresh trouble for the Grand Alliance led by Nitish Kumar in the run-up to the Bihar assembly polls, the All India Majlis-e-Ittehad-ul Muslimeen or AIMIM of Asaduddin Owaisi looks set to contest 24 seats in the Seemanchal region of Kishanganj, Purnia, Katihar and Araria.

Another spoiler in the region could be the NCP which left the Grand Alliance after being allotted only three seats against its demand for 12. The Muslim-Yadav vote base, key to the Grand Alliance, make for almost 31 per cent of the population of Bihar. On Sunday, RJD chief Lalu Prasad cautioned supporters against BJP “moves” to split Yadav votes: “I have learnt that Narendra Modi has given the state BJP the task of making five Yadav leaders contest as independents in every assembly segment to split our votes. Modi has been also invoking Yaduvanshis. So beware of such moves.”

• Samajwadi Party contesting alone is embarrassing for the grand alliance: Asaduddin Owaisi

And the AIMIM has just added to the worries of Nitish and Lalu. Of the 24 seats in Seemanchal, 10 account for Muslim-dominated areas.

A Kishanganj JD(U) leader said: “Owaisi does have appeal. He can disturb equations. We have communicated our concerns to the top leadership. The association of Akhtarul Iman, a popular local leader, is a matter of serious concern.”

NCP leader and Katihar MP Tariq Anwar too has said he is open to an alliance with any party other than the BJP. Sources said the NCP has been in talks with Pappu Yadav.

JD(U) national spokesperson K C Tyagi told The Indian Express: “Sharad Yadav has been in talks with NCP chief Sharad Pawar to save the alliance. As for Owaisi, I will not react until he officially announces his party’s candidates. But voters should be wary of BJP agents.”

Meanwhile, a senior BJP leader said: “We are going to give many tickets to Yadav candidates. We have in our ranks Yadav leaders in Nand Kishore Yadav, Bhupendra Yadav, Ram Kripal Yadav and Nityanand Rai. Our attempt is to prove that a sizeable number of Yadavs have turned to us since the last Lok Sabha elections. Youths born after Lalu’s ascension as chief minister are young voters, and most do not associate with him.”

The RJD chief’s concerns, the BJP leader, said were not unfounded: “Sample any rally of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The youth crowd is not casteist. Yadav youths are as much enamoured of the PM as other youths.” BJP leader Sushil Kumar Modi said: “We will surely give more tickets to Muslims. It is a myth that Muslims do not vote for us”.

He said Khagaria MP and LJP leader Choudhary Mehboob Ali Qaisar will attend the Prime Minister’s rally in Saharsa on Tuesday. The BJP expects Modi to announce a special package for Bihar.


- See more at: Nitish Kumar-led alliance’s new worry: MIM could be the spoiler in Bihar | The Indian Express

@jamahir @levina

BJP asked SP: Will you risk going with Cong in UP?
The BJP is waiting for a rebellion in the rival camp of Nitish Kumar and Lalu Prasad once ticket distribution begins.


Ram Gopal Yadav
“Do you want to risk division of Muslim votes in Uttar Pradesh by going along with the Congress in Bihar?”

This is what SP leader Ram Gopal Yadav was asked by top BJP leaders he met earlier this week in the heart of New Delhi.

On Thursday, the SP walked out of the Nitish Kumar-led grand alliance in Bihar that includes the Congress.

It was conveyed to the SP leader that any truck with the Congress in Bihar could pose problems for his party in Uttar Pradesh where assembly polls are due in 2017. The SP counts on Muslim votes and the scenario of sharing this space with the Congress was underlined by BJP leaders.

• Mulayam walks out of Grand Alliance: More psychological dents than physical
• Bihar polls: Samajwadi Party quits Janata Parivar, to contest independently

After the sharing of seats in Bihar, SP leaders publicly said that allotment of 40 seats to the Congress was unacceptable to them. Adding “insult” to injury, the SP was offered only five seats. That too after the NCP walked out of the grand alliance.

The BJP, on the other hand, is waiting for a rebellion in the rival camp of Nitish Kumar and Lalu Prasad once ticket distribution begins.

BJP leaders point out that in the last election, Lalu’s RJD contested 180 seats but this time it has only 100. Where will the 80 candidates of the last election and the new ticket hopefuls of the RJD go, they ask. The BJP hopes to see multiple platforms, outside the BJP fold, because these can split the “secular” votes of the grand alliance.

In the countdown to the elections, BJP president Amit Shah’s strategy is working on a way forward through what the party believes will be a fight between four blocs — the grand alliance led by Nitish, the NDA alliance, an alliance of the NCP-SP and a coalition of parties led by Asaduddin Owaisi, Pappu Yadav and former NCP chief Nagmani.

On the Bihar map, the BJP has drawn three battle zones. Of the 243 assembly seats, 40 seats have been allotted to the Congress and the BJP believes these will be the “easiest to win” given the absence of Congress at the grassroots level.

The BJP thinks the 100 seats in the RJD kitty will be the real test, a challenge greater than the 100 being contested by the JD(U). It believes that Yadav voters of the RJD, traditionally against Nitish, could vote for SP and others in constituencies allotted to JD(U).

- See more at: BJP asked SP: Will you risk going with Cong in UP? | The Indian Express

 

[rezangahir]

Grand alliance seems to be loosing ground after initial optimism and poll surveys.

Though BJP still don't have a good CM candidate.

 

[Sam.]

Grand alliance seems to be loosing ground after initial optimism and poll surveys.

Though BJP still don't have a good CM candidate.

No doubt about that

 

[dray]

That election is very crucial for not only BJP, but for entire India, this election will decide whether India will be able to speed up the reform process and grow as per its real potential, or India will remain stuck in petty caste driven opportunistic politics of some of the most corrupt and regressive politicians.

 

[Sam.]

That election is very crucial for not only BJP, but for entire India, this election will decide whether India will be able to speed up the reform process and grow as per its real potential, or India will remain stuck in petty caste driven opportunistic politics of some of the most corrupt and regressive politicians.

That's why i posted this thread so we can discuss our future rather than reply to trolls.

 

[dray]

That's why i posted this thread so we can discuss our future rather than reply to trolls.

It is sad to see the kind of regressive politics Congress is doing after their defeat in LS, they couldn't even take a comprehensive defeat gracefully and work constructively in an opposition role, opposition do question and oppose the government, it's their job. But what Congress is doing is very immature and harmful for the country's interest.

I think, though this grand alliance will consolidate votes, but it will also drive away some of the Nitish Kumar's votes to BJP because of the presence of Lalu and Congress in the alliance.

 

[Sam.]

It is sad to see the kind of regressive politics Congress is doing after their defeat in LS, they couldn't even take a comprehensive defeat gracefully and work constructively in an opposition role, opposition do question and oppose the government, it's their job. But what Congress is doing is very immature and harmful for the country's interest.

I think, though this grand alliance will consolidate votes, but it will also drive away some of the Nitish Kumar's votes to BJP because of the presence of Lalu and Congress in the alliance.

Competition is very close , anyone can win from here but what BJP lack is good CM candidate. Congress is always like this but people see it now as literacy is going up in India.