Patna, Jan 7 (IANS): With the JD(U) flexing its muscles in Bihar over seat sharing with alliance partners, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar is expected to go to Kolkata on January 17 for the death anniversary of West Bengal’s former chief minister Jyoti Basu.

His death anniversary has been organized by the Jyoti Basu foundation.

“Bihar chief minister is going for the event as Jyoti Basu was a stalwart of the Left parties. During his long political career, he also refused to accept the post of Prime Minister once. Such people need to be appreciated. CM Nitish Kumar has no other interest, he is going there out of respect,” said JD(U) MLC Neeraj Kumar.

The move of Nitish Kumar to go to Kolkata is significant keeping in view that Mamata Banerjee, the West Bengal chief minister, during the fourth INDIA bloc meeting held in New Delhi on December 19, proposed Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge as the prime ministerial candidate. Nitish Kumar may try to give a message to Mamata Banerjee and other leaders like Lalu Prasad Yadav and Rahul Gandhi of the INDIA bloc that he has another group which can back him at the time of the selection of the PM face post the Lok Sabha election 2024.

The JD(U) on Friday stated that it will contest at least 16 Lok Sabha seats. Sanjay Kumar Jha, the national general secretary of the JD-U and a cabinet minister, said that his party will contest more than 16 seats but not less which is an ominous sign for the rest of the parties in the Mahagathbandhan including the RJD and the Congress. If Nitish Kumar goes to Kolkata for Jyoti Basu's death anniversary, it gives a political message to the rest of the INDIA bloc leaders that he and the Left parties are close to each other.

Nitish Kumar used the Left parties to attack the Congress in the past. On November 2, 2023 at a rally of the Communist Party of India (CPI) in Patna, he said that work related to the INDIA bloc is not being done due to the Congress party which is busy in assembly elections in five states.

“We have formed the Indian Nation Development Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) to uproot the BJP from the country but the work is not taking place in it. The Congress party is busy in assembly elections in five states. After the results of the five states, we will sit together and will plan the next course of action against the BJP,” Kumar said at the CPI rally organized with the tagline “BJP Hatao Desh Bachao”.

Nitish Kumar and his party, the JD(U), know the ground situation of the Left parties in West Bengal and Kerala. In West Bengal, the Mamata Banerjee led TMC is dominant but the Left parties and the Congress are making efforts to take some Lok Sabha seats. Similarly, the Left parties and the Congress are against each other in Kerala as well. So, Nitish Kumar is taking a stand in advance to put pressure on the INDIA bloc leaders.

“If Nitish Kumar is going for Jyoti Basu's death anniversary, it is a good thing as the JD(U), Left parties, RJD and others are part of the INDIA bloc. It will make the INDIA bloc more strong. It is the BJP leaders who are unnecessarily extracting political meaning in every move of the INDIA leaders,” said Mritunjay Tiwari, RJD spokesperson.

In Bihar, the Congress is showing a big heart at the moment with the main objective of defeating the BJP at any cost.

"The issue of seat sharing is currently with the top leadership of the party in Delhi. I don’t think anyone will show rigidity. Seats will be negotiated and we will contest with full strength in Bihar. Our top leadership will decide the number of seats to contest after the negotiation with the alliance partners,” said Madan Mohan Jha, former state president of the Congress and an MLC.

“The Mahagathbandhan was formed in Bihar as in some places the Congress is weak and in some places the RJD or JD(U) or the Left parties. Our objective is to contest as an alliance to defeat the BJP. Suppose, I am from the Congress party but also need the votes of the RJD, JD(U) and the Left parties to defeat the BJP. This is our objective,” Jha said.

At present the seat sharing formula has not been finalized. The JD(U) leaders want to finalize it immediately with discussions among the RJD, Congress and the Left parties currently underway. Nitish Kumar wants to finalize the seat sharing formula by the end of January.