Bihar BJP president Sanjay Jaiswal on Saturday said whoever wanted to join the NDA under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi was welcome. He was answering a question on the possible re-entry of Hindustan Awam Morcha (HAM) Jitan Ram Manjhi in the alliance. “Whoever accepts the leadership of Shri Narendra Modi is welcome in the NDA,” he said.
Also read: Jitan Ram Manjhi meets Nitish Kumar amid speculations of return to NDA
With the Bihar Assembly polls expected by October-November, there has been much speculation about former Chief Minister Manjhi, who had left the NDA after fighting polls within the alliance in 2015.
Mr. Jaiswal spoke after a meeting of party MPs from the State with national president J.P. Nadda on Saturday. The MPs asked Mr. Nadda to ensure an equitable distribution of seats between the BJP and the alliance partner Janata Dal (U) since both parties had fought on an equal number of seats in the Lok Sabha. Earlier, the JD(U) used to fight on a larger number of seats in the Assembly polls. Mr. Nadda remained non-committal on seat adjustments but asked the MPs to “fight for all NDA partners as a family” during the campaign.
Also read: Manjhi’s meeting with Nitish fuels speculation in poll-bound Bihar
He also asked the MPs to visit at least two panchayat areas per day in September not just in their constituencies but other Assembly segments as well. “Virtual meetings with mandal level workers and leaders should also be held,” Mr. Nadda was reported to have said. The Election Commission announced broad guidelines for the conduct of polls during the pandemic.
