Bihar AIMIM president Akhtarul Iman (L) & RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav (R) | X @ians_india & File Pic
Patna: In a major boost to the prospects of Mahagathbandhan winning a seat in the Rajya Sabha election to be held on Monday, Bihar AIMIM president Akhtarul Iman promised that his party would support the opposition alliance`s candidate in the polls. The breakthrough came after RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav attended an Iftar party, hosted by AIMIM, at the residence of Iman on Sunday.After the Iftar party, Iman announced that the party`s all five MLAs would support Mahagathbandhan candidate Amarendra Dhari Singh in the Rajya Sabha elections.
On the other hand, Tejashwi said, “Akhtarul Iman from the AIMIM party had invited us for Iftar, and we have arrived here today for the Iftar. We have sought support from the AIMIM party, and I am confident that in tomorrow’s Rajya Sabha election, all secular parties will come together to defeat the BJP…”
Although RJD has re-nominated Singh, a prominent businessman, as its candidate in the RS polls, he enjoys support of six Congress MLAs, two CPI (ML) MLAs, one CPI (M) MLA, and one Indian Inclusive Party (IIP) MLA.
Meanwhile, RJD MLAs have been moved to a posh hotel in Patna to preempt any possibility of a split within the ranks or cross-voting. RJD leaders alleged that the ruling alliance might attempt to poach their legislators and for this very reason, the party decided to shift its MLAs to a single location. According to sources, former legislators have also been assigned the responsibility of keeping a close watch on the sitting MLAs and promptly reporting any suspicious activity to the party leadership. Also Watch:
RJD chief spokesperson Shakti Yadav alleged that the BJP forcibly fielded a fifth candidate in the fray. He claimed that BJP might attempt to win the election by leveraging its financial muscle and political influence, but it would not find it an easy task.RJD cannot win a Rajya Sabha seat without the support of five AIMIM MLAs. The Mahagathbandhan has total 35 MLAs including 25 of RJD and requires support of 41 MLAs to ensure its candidate’s victory. Despite AIMIM’s support, Mahagathbandhan will need the support of BSP MLA for victory in the polls. The Rajya Sabha election is going to be held in Bihar after 12 years, as the polling was necessitated after the RJD decided to field its candidate for the fifth seat. There are altogether six candidates including chief minister Nitish Kumar, BJP president Nitin Nabin for five Rajya Sabha, going to fall vacant on April 9.