Patna, Oct 20: The Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) on Monday released its list of 143 candidates for the upcoming Bihar Assembly elections. Five of these candidates will face nominees from other parties within the INDIA bloc.
The list was made public just hours before the deadline for filing nomination papers for the second and final phase of the polls. Its release also ended speculation that the RJD might contest the Kutumba seat, currently represented by Bihar Congress president Rajesh Kumar Ram — a move that could have triggered a direct clash between the two allies.
RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav will contest once again from the Raghopur constituency, while the party has allotted tickets to 24 women candidates this election.
The announcement also confirmed the seat-sharing arrangement within the Mahagathbandhan (Grand Alliance). Under the deal, the RJD will contest 143 seats, the Congress 61 seats, and the CPI (ML) 20 seats.
The RJD’s delay in announcing its candidates was attributed to internal disagreements within the alliance. However, even before the official list was made public, the party had already distributed election symbols to its nominees.
Meanwhile, the Congress on Monday released a fresh list of six more candidates, bringing its total to 60 for the Bihar Assembly polls.
The elections will be held in two phases on November 6 and 11, and results will be declared on November 14.
