Left parties to fight Bihar polls unitedly, open to join Mahagathbandhan

Speaking to ETV Bharat, CPI(M) leader Hannan Mollah said that his party, CPI, and CPIML have decided to contest the Bihar Assembly elections unitedly, and are willing to join the Mahagathbandhan led by the RJD and Congress.

New Delhi:The three major left parties will contest the upcoming Bihar elections unitedly, and are open for an alliance with the Congress-RJD Mahagathbandhan, senior CPI (Marxist) leader Hannan Mollah said on Wednesday.

Speaking to ETV Bharat, Mollah, who is also the party's Bihar in-charge, said that the Communist Party of India (CPI), CPI(M), and the CPIML decided that instead of fighting against one another, they will instead contest the elections unitedly.

Mollah said that the left parties are willing to join the Mahagathbandhan comprising of Congress and Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD). He added that he had already spoken to RJD leader Lalu Yadav over the issue, and the latter asked the left parties to send a list of constituencies they want to contest from.

The CPI(M) has expressed desire to fight on 17 seats, CPI on 25, and CPIML on 26, and have already sent the list to this regard, Mollah said.

According to sources, the left parties are expected to be given 30 seats in total, but the CPI(M) leader that nothing has been decided on seat sharing yet, and clarity on the precise numbers could emerge post September 11.

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Mollah said that the left parties had always fought elections on issues, and it would be the same this time around as well.

Unemployment, floods, education, and health are important issues in Bihar, and the people are unhappy with the Nitish government, Mollah said.

The CPI(M) leader added that Nitish Kumar had come to power by deceiving the people last time, and since his government has not fulfilled the promises, the public will not be deceived this time.

Though the left parties enjoy a solid base in regions of Bihar, they have not been able to taste much success. Mollah said this was primarily due to the fact that the parties fought among themselves, and by contesting elections separately, they were benefiting the BJP.

With the three parties contesting unitedly, the results will be different this time, Mollah said.

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