2019 elections: JD(U) wants to know its share of Lok Sabha seats

NEW DELHI: Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar may persuade BJP president Amit Shah to clear the air over seat-sharing arrangement for the 2019 general election when they meet on Thursday.
Kumar’s Janata Dal (United) wants to ascertain from its coalition partner the number of seats it would get to contest in the Lok Sabha polls so as to start the process of identifying the seats, said people aware of the matter.

Shah is scheduled to meet Kumar over breakfast and dinner during his day-long trip to Patna during which he will review his party’s preparations for the polls. This will be his first visit to the state since Kumar pulled out of the mahagathbandhan or grand alliance with the RJD and Congress to return to the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance in July last year.

“If a decision is taken on the exact number of seats as JDU’s share, then it would be an easy task for our party to identify the seats where it can put up a good show in the Lok Sabha polls,” said a JDU member, who did not wish to be identified.

During his meeting with Shah, Kumar may underline the need for a proper understanding among NDA partners on the number of seats they would contest in the general election, said the people cited earlier. NDA constituents BJP, LJP and RLSP had won 22, six and three seats respectively in Bihar in the 2014 general election. The JDU, which won two seats, was not part of the NDA at that time.

Apart from the seat-sharing arrangement, Kumar may express his displeasure over the recent statements of Union minister Giriraj Singh on the issue of governance.

“Nitishji is unhappy with Giriraj’s statement. His political strength is his good governance. So, he may speak to Shah over this issue also,” said another JDU member.