• Source:JND
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Mahagathbandhan CM Face: Mahagathbandhan leaders on Thursday announced that RJD chief Tejashwi Yadav will be the Chief Ministerial candidate for the alliance in the upcoming Bihar Assembly Elections, after weeks of rumoured infighting and uncertainty. Addressing a press briefing in Patna, senior Congress leader and former Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot announced the decision taken by the alliance partners.

"Tejashwi Yadav is young and a man of commitment. He has fulfilled all the commitments he had promised. He has a long career. Hence, we have decided to contest this election under the leadership of Tejashwi Yadav. He will be our Chief Ministerial face," Gahlot said.

In a surprising move, the Mahagathbandhan has named Vikassheel Insaan Party (VIP) chief Mukesh Sahani as the alliance's presumptive Deputy Chief Minister. Mukesh Sahani, however, will not be the only deputy CM candidate for the coalition; other alliance members are likely to be named after the polls.

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According to reports, the announcement regarding the deputy chief ministerial candidate was not on the agenda during the meeting of the alliance members. However, given the resentment in the opposition camp and Sahani's reported pressure on the allies, the Mahagathbandhan leaders named him as presumptive deputy CM.

The decision comes after a prolonged dispute among the constituent partners -- particularly between the RJD and the Congress -- over seat-sharing arrangements and the CM face. According to the final formula, the RJD will contest 143 seats, while other partners, including Congress, VIP and left parties, will field their candidates on the remaining 100 seats.

The Mahagathbandhan has been receiving severe criticism from the NDA over the reported internal fissures among the alliance partners over the seat-sharing formula. According to reports, Congress initially demanded 70 seats to contest, the same number it contested in the 2020 Assembly elections.

However, RJD supremo Lalu Prasad Yadav was unwilling to concede that many seats this time, citing the Congress's poor performance last time, when it only won 19 of the 70 seats it contested.

The situation reached a breaking point earlier this week, prompting the Congress high command to intervene. The party dispatched Ashok Gehlot, former Rajasthan Chief Minister and Bihar election in-charge, to Patna to mediate between the top leadership of both parties. Gehlot met Lalu Prasad Yadav, Rabri Devi, and Tejashwi Yadav on Wednesday.

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Following the meeting, Gehlot announced that all issues had been resolved and that the alliance would fight the Bihar elections together. "All is well within the Grand Alliance. We will fight this election together with full strength and unity. We have resolved the issues of friendly fights on some seats,"Gehlot said after the meeting.

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