New Delhi: Communist Party of India (CPI) General Secretary D Raja on Friday welcomed the announcement of the schedule of the Bihar Assembly elections, saying his party had a clear objective to defeat BJP and its allies in the state.
Speaking to ETV Bharat, Raja said," At the time of parliamentary elections we were not part of Mahagathbandhan and the result is before the people that BJP-JDU alliance won the elections. This must be a lesson for all the opposition parties. As far as our party is concerned, we have already made clear that the primary objective in this election should be to defeat BJP and its allies in the state."
"We have to work together and there should be reasonable negotiations. Parties must be accommodative to each other. Our party is negotiating with RJD but Congress has not yet taken a concrete position. We have agreed to fight together and talks are on" said Raja.
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"Mahagathbandhan in Bihar has not been able to maintain a cordial relation with it's smaller allies like HAM and RLSP. Jeetan Ram Manjhi with his Hindustani Awam Morcha has already left Mahagathbandhan and joined his former clan NDA. What is going to happen with Mahagathbandhan, I don't know but as a major political party, we are negotiating with RJD and Congress. We expect adequate seats in the state this year."
Slamming Nitish Kumar led government in Bihar, Raja said, "What is the development they can claim? Chief Minister inaugurated a bridge and that was collapsed. The way they have been managing Covid-19 crisis is also a prime issue. Migrant labourers crisis, then floods and unemployment will be the major issues this time. These are all current issues which prove the failure of Bihar government."
"Amit Shah, PM Modi and JP Badda have already started campaigning for the elections but people can not be taken for granted as they have their own experience. Our party will be fighting against BJP-JDU combined and we will counter the BJP's claims," he added.
Reportedly, the Election Commission of India on Friday announced the schedule for elections to the 243-member Bihar assembly. Polling will take place across three phases on October 28, November 3 and November 7. Counting of votes will be done on November 10.
Notably, Bihar Assembly Election 2020 will be the first major electoral exercise in the country since the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic and the commission has announced strict Covid-19 protocols.
Read: Election Commission announces Bihar assembly poll dates
