Bihar Elections 2020: NDA Backs Nitish Kumar As CM; JD(U) To Contest On 115 Seats, Chirag Paswan's LJP Rebuffed

Bihar Elections 2002: While making the announcement, Nitish Kumar saiad that his party Janata Dal United (JDU) will contest Bihar Assembly Elections 2020 on as many as 115 seats.

Janta Dal United National President and Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar with BJP senior leader and Dy CM Sushil Kumar Modi addresses a press conference. (Image: PTI)

Bihar Elections 2002: The much-awaited seat sharing formula for National Democratic Alliance (NDA) has been announced by Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Tuesday during a press conference. While making the announcement, Kumar said that his paryt Janata Dal United (JDU) will contest Bihar Assembly Elections 2020 on as many as 122 seats. He also informed that out of JDU's 122 seats, 7 have been given to Jitan Ram Majhi-led Hindustani Awam Morcha (HAM) under the agreement. Bihar CM also informed that BJP will allot seats to Vikassheel Insaan Party under their quota. Talks regarding the same are underway. Meanwhile what came as a big shocker amid the announcement, BJP has rebuffed Chirag Paswan's LJP in the upcoming Bihar Polls saying that its alliance with Nitish Kumar's JD(U) in Bihar is "unbreakable". "Ram Vilas Paswan is unwell. We want him to recover. Did he reach Rajya Sabha without JDU's help? How many seats do they have in Bihar Vidhan Sabha? Two. So, BJP-JD(U) gave him ticket to RS. What do we have to do with what someone says?," Nitish Kumar said while speaking to reporters. Kumar did not mention Chirag by name but remarked sarcastically, "I believe in doing my job. If some people derive pleasure out of saying something inconsequential, they are most welcome to do so. It does not bother me". Sharing the stage with Nitish Kumar, Bihar Deputy CM and BJP leader Sushil Modi said that his party will file a petition in Election Commission for banning LJP from using PM Narendra Modi's picture in its poll campaigns. Responding to a query about post-poll scenario, Modi, asserted "we have said unequivocally that Nitish Kumar will be our Chief Minister. It does not matter which party gets how many seats in the elections". In the outgoing assembly, RJD was the largest party with 73 MLAs followed by JD(U) 69, BJP (54), Congress (23), CPI-ML (3), LJP (2), HAM and AIMIM of Hyderabad MP Asaduddin Owaisi one each and Independent (5). A total of 12 seats are vacant.