New Delhi: The announcement of RJD’s Tejashwi Yadav as INDIA bloc’s chief ministerial face and VIP’s Mukesh Sahani as his deputy was done strategically to put pressure on the ruling NDA ahead of the Bihar Assembly elections, said Congress insiders.Elections for 243 Assembly seats in Bihar will be held on November 6 and 11. The results would be declared on November 14. The INDIA bloc is trying hard to dislodge the ruling NDA which has been in power in the state for the last two decades.The announcement of Opposition’s CM face made by Congress veteran and former Rajasthan chief minister Ashok Gehlot in capital Patna on Thursday was also aimed at sending a message to the marginalized groups in the poll-bound state and project unity among the Opposition parties, the insiders said.Tejashwi belongs to the influential Yadav (OBC) community that has supported the RJD over the last several decades. The addition of VIP in the Opposition alliance this time and the projection of Sahani, who belongs to the fishermen community, will help the INDIA bloc woo the extremely backward communities that have traditionally supported JD-U leader and chief minister Nitish Kumar, the insiders said.“It was a calculated move. We have named our chief minister and deputy chief minister. This showed clarity within the Opposition over the leadership issue. It also showed that the Opposition is united. Will the NDA now do the same and clarify its leadership position. The BJP has enjoyed power by backing Nitish Kumar for decades but keeps saying the NDA's chief minister candidate will be decided after the elections. The voters will now judge the two groups,” AICC functionary Avinash Pande and one of the AICC observers for the Bihar elections told ETV Bharat.According to Pande, the announcement of CM face had put a lid over reports of bickering within the INDIA bloc over seat-sharing. He noted that the confusion over some seats where friendly fights were to occur would be sorted out soon. The AICC functionary said that the bloc would soon start its joint campaign which will highlight the various social welfare guarantees for different sections of society.On October 22, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi had sent Gehlot to meet RJD chief Lalu Prasad Yadav and Tejashwi and resolve the differences within the alliance. The consensus showed on Thursday although Rahul was not present when the INDIA bloc staged its show of unity.
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