Bihar polls: Lalu to declare seats for Samajawadi Party on Sunday

Patna, Aug 22: The Bihar unit of Samajwadi Party, which had protested over denial of seats in the grand alliance for Bihar Assembly polls, today claimed to have fruitful talks with the alliance partners RJD President Lalu Prasad and Chief Minister Nitish Kumar over seat sharing.

A solution has been found and Prasad has assured the party to make a declaration in this regard by tomorrow, SP Bihar president Ramchandra Singh Yadav told reporters here.

Earlier SP had sought 17 seats which now has been revised and a final claim for 12 seats has been given to the RJD chief on which a decision would be taken, Yadav said.

The Bihar SP chief said his party wants to prepare for a successful rally of the grand alliance in Patna on August 30 and expressed confidence that a solution of seats would be reached before it.

After the declaration of seats, a programme would be finalised for participation of SP supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav in the August 30 rally, he added.

At a joint press conference of JD(U), RJD and Congress on August 12, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar had announced seat sharing among partners of grand alliance in which 100 seats each were announced for the first two parties while Congress was given 40 seats.

NCP got three but there was none for SP. RJD President Lalu Prasad had said that Mulayam Singh Yadav was his relative and if need arose, he would accommodate his party.

Peeved over denial of seats, the SP had sat on a dharna for four days that ended after the intervention of party General Secretary Kiranmoy Nanda.

PTI