Patna, Sep 22 In a bid to energise its cadre and stake a stronger claim in the upcoming Bihar Assembly elections 2025, the Congress party is preparing for a high-profile entry into the state’s political arena.
Party leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra will hold her first rally in Motihari, named the “Har Ghar Adhikar Rally".
Former state Congress president and Rajya Sabha MP Akhilesh Singh announced that the rally will serve as the Grand Alliance’s formal election launch, although the exact date is yet to be finalized.
The rally is expected to be Priyanka Gandhi’s debut on Bihar’s electoral stage and a key show of strength ahead of the seat-sharing negotiations with allies.
Before the Motihari rally, Congress will host a crucial Congress Working Committee (CWC) meeting at Patna’s Sadaqat Ashram on September 24, where top leaders, including Rahul Gandhi, Sonia Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi, Mallikarjun Kharge, K.C. Venugopal and others will participate.
The twin events -- the CWC meet and the Motihari rally -- are widely seen as an attempt to apply pressure on the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) during the finalisation of the Grand Alliance’s seat-sharing formula.
Congress sources indicate the party is eyeing more than 70 seats, despite its poor strike rate in the 2020 Bihar Assembly elections, where it contested 70 seats but won only 19.
The RJD, the largest party in the alliance, is reportedly reluctant to concede as many seats this time, citing the Congress’s underwhelming past performance.
The RJD also faces the challenge of accommodating other partners, including Mukesh Sahani’s VIP, Pashupati Kumar Paras’s Rashtriya Lok Janshakti Party (RLJP), and Hemant Soren's Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM).
Additionally, RJD chief Lalu Prasad Yadav is keen on engaging the Left parties -- particularly the CPI-ML, which had an impressive run in 2020 by winning 12 of the 19 seats it contested.
The CPI and CPI-M also outperformed Congress in terms of strike rate in the previous election.
Regarding the seat-sharing issue, Akhilesh Singh said that everything has been cleared up. Everything will be revealed when the time comes.
Regarding the infighting within the Lalu family, Congress leader Akhilesh Prasad Singh said: "We know Lalu's family intimately. Once Lalu Prasad scolds them, everything will calm down."
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