NDA Reviews MLC Poll Performance Amid Allegations Of Lack Of Support From BJP

Patna: Amid allegations that the BJP failed to extend adequate support to its ally JD(U) in the recently concluded Bihar Legislative Council elections, NDA held a review meeting in Patna on Thursday to assess its performance.

The party won only one of the four seats it contested. Bihar Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary also attended the meeting.

Independent Candidates Defeat JD(U) Nominees

The meeting was significant against the backdrop of two Independent candidates, Banshidhar Brajwasi and Rahul Raj, who defeated JD(U) nominees in the Tirhut Graduates' and Saran Teachers' constituencies, respectively, later joining the BJP. Bihar BJP chief Sanjay Saraogi claimed that they did not join the party but only announced they would extend their support to it.

While JD(U) candidate Abhishek Jha lost the Tirhut Graduates seat to Brajwasi, the party's nominee Pushkar Anand was defeated by Rahul Raj, who had contested as a rebel BJP candidate.

JD(U) To Examine Election Feedback

Addressing the media after the meeting, JD(U) national spokesperson Rajiv Ranjan Prasad said the party would examine feedback received from the candidates, district presidents and election in-charges before deciding its future strategy.

Besides the CM, JD(U) national working president Sanjay Kumar Jha, state president Umesh Singh Kushwaha and other senior leaders attended.

Ahead of the meeting, Kushwaha had asserted that the JD(U)-BJP relationship was stronger than any other political alliance and had remained intact for two decades. The party had invited all four candidates and their election managers to review the poll outcome.

Defeated Candidate Reflects On Poll Outcome

Meanwhile, Abhishek Jha, who lost the Tirhut Graduates seat, said he had learnt several lessons from the election, including how political manoeuvring and alleged conspiracies could influence electoral outcomes.

"People say we have lost the election. I believe that in an election, you either win or learn. You learn from your shortcomings and experiences. Sometimes, people also resort to conspiracies and machinations, and those too teach you a lot," he said.

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Referring to his earlier social media post in which he had compared himself to Abhimanyu, saying he was left alone, Jha said expressing one's views before the party leadership or within the alliance should not be construed as resentment.

"The NDA is a very large family. Whatever discussions took place were internal matters of the party and the alliance," he said, adding that he had conveyed his concerns to the leadership.