Patna: Congress, under the pressure from its ally RJD, on Friday did not field its leader Mohammed Naushad Alam from Jale in the coming Bihar assembly election as Naushad had organised an event at which an offensive comment was made about Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his late mother.
The event was organised in Darbhanga district during Rahul Gandhi`s Voter Adhikar Yatra in August.
Congress decided to field Rishi Mishra from the Jale assembly seat, replacing Mohammed Naushad Alam. Mishra, the grandson of former union minister Lalit Narayan Mishra, has been associated with both Congress and RJD.
While condemning the incident, PM Modi had said it was "deeply saddening, painful, and distressing." The Congress defended itself as a party spokesperson claimed that "BJP agents" had "infiltrated" the event.
However, the RJD contended that nominating Naushad could provide the NDA an opportunity to target the opposition alliance in the election. Later in the day, the Congress announced Rishi Mishra as its candidate from Jale assembly seat.
Soon after the announcement, Congress MP Tariq Anwar raised an objection, saying that fielding Rishi Mishra from Jale assembly seat was "not the right decision.
"Mishra belongs to a reputed family. He is a good politician. But, fielding a RJD leader on a Congress ticket is not the right decision," Congress MP said.
The assembly election for the Jale constituency will be held on November 6, and the results will be announced on November 14.
The Congress on Thursday released its first list of 48 candidates for the upcoming Bihar Assembly elections, fielding its state unit chief Rajesh Ram from Kutumba seat and CLP leader Shakeel Ahmad Khan from Kadwa.
According to the list, the party has fielded Bihar Youth Congress chief Prakash Garib Das from Bachhwada seat. Jayesh Mangal Singh will contest from Bagaha, Amit Giri from Nautan and Abhishek Ranjan from Chanpatia seat. From Bettiah seat, the party has fielded Wasi Ahmed, while Shyam Bihari Prasad will be its candidate from Raxaul. From Govindgarh seat, the Congress named Shashi Bhushan Rai alias Gappu Rai as its candidate while Amit Kumar Singh Tunna was fielded from Riga.
Meanwhile, there is a possibility of friendly contests between allies of the INDIA bloc on a few seats like Bachhwara, Vaishali, Lalganj and others.
