Seat-sharing will be done amicably: Lalu Yadav

New Delhi, Jun 8: With a grand alliance against the BJP-led NDA firming up in Bihar, RJD chief Lalu Prasad today said they would sort out the seat-sharing issues amicably.

Meanwhile, Congress today engaged senior leaders A K Antony, Ghulam Nabi Azad and C P Joshi to hold talks with the Bihar outfits and work out an "honourable" share of seats for the party in 243-member state assembly.

While JD-U and RJD put forward different formulae to resolve the seat-sharing issues, Congress demanded that it be alloted around 40 seats in the state.

Expressing confidence that the seat-sharing would also be done amicably, the RJD chief said, "When hearts have met, we will sort out the issue of seats as well." Of the 243 assembly seats in Bihar, JD(U) had contested 141 in alliance with BJP and won 117 in 2010 elections. Lalu's RJD on the other hand had contested 168 seats in alliance with Ram Vilas Paswan's LJP and won only 24 seats. Congress had contested on all 243 seats and won only four.

While JD(U) began by saying that the 2010 formula should be repeated, RJD talked of 2014 Lok Sabha results to be considered as the basis for seat-sharing. In 2014 Lok Sabha polls, JD(U) had won only two seats, while RJD won four and Congress two. RJD had then led in 43 assembly segments and finished second in 92 assembly segments.

RJD Vice President Raghuvansh Prasad Singh had last month demanded that the party be allotted at least 145 seats of the total of 243 seats on this basis. Beyond these public assertions, one compromise formula being discussed was that both JD(U) and RJD contest 100 seats each leaving the rest for allies.

JD-U chief Nitish Kumar, who had yesterday met Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi here, today said in Patna that Congress is very much part of the plan to firm up a broad alliance comprising the JD(U) and RJD among others for the assembly polls in Bihar.

After it was decided yesterday that JD-U and RJD will fight elections together, SP general secretary Ram Gopal expressed confidence that the leaders of the two parties will complete the task of devising an effective seat-sharing arrangement very soon.

PTI