Stamp on Bihar move? Shahto attend SBSP rally in Arwal

Time of India

2 days ago

Lucknow: In an important political development, Union home minister and BJP chief strategist Amit Shah is scheduled to attend a rally hosted by the party's alliance partner OP Rajbhar-led Suheldev Bhartiya Samaj Party (SBSP) in poll-bound Bihar on August 24.
SBSP national general secretary Arun Rajbhar said on Monday that Shah has agreed to attend the rally proposed to be organised in Arwal district, around 80 km from Patna. He said that the rally would project the BJP-SBSP alliance in Bihar, where assembly elections are scheduled to take place later this year, most likely in October or November.
"We seek close coordination with the BJP and a fair number of seats to contest in the Bihar assembly polls," Rajbhar said, adding that the party leadership was in close touch with the BJP high command to lay a final blueprint of its alliance.
The SBSP chief earlier claimed to have identified nearly 29 assembly constituencies across Bihar where it aimed to contest. These include districts such as Sasaram, West Champaran, Nawada, Nalanda, Gaya, Aurangabad, and Bettiah.
The development could potentially allow Rajbhar to position itself as a key poll partner of the BJP beyond UP.
The SBSP, as a matter of fact, earlier claimed to form a third front with smaller parties in Bihar if its talks with the BJP failed.
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Rajbhar has been seeking to expand his party's footprint in an apparent bid to scale up his bargaining power.
Experts said that Shah's scheduled presence at the SBSP's rally will not be just symbolic. It is being viewed as a clear message that the BJP wanted to widen its caste arithmetic by formally inducting and showcasing smaller allies.
Shah rarely attends rallies of minor allies unless there is a strategic value, say political analysts, adding that it would signal the BJP's strategy to consolidate the Rajbhar votes seen as crucial in Bihar's fragmented electoral scenario.
In Bihar, Rajbhars (also known as Bhar) are present in certain districts of eastern Bihar bordering UP (like Buxar, Kaimur, Rohtas). While not numerically dominant state-wide, they can play a spoiler or consolidator role in 15–20 assembly constituencies, analysts said.
The BJP-led NDA in Bihar currently comprises constituents including Nitish Kumar's Janta Dal (United), Chirag Paswan-led Lok Jan Shakti Party (Ram Vilas), Jitan Majhi-led Hindustani Awam Morcha (HAM), and Upendra Kushwaha's Rashtriya Lok Morcha.
The inclusion of SBSP—though numerically small—may inevitably shrink the pie further. This, sources said, could raise the already prevailing tensions in seat negotiations, especially between LJP (RV) and JD(U).
Paswan recently flexed his muscles by declaring that his party would field candidates on "all 243 seats" of Bihar, prompting the opposition to claim that the JLP (RV) leader was all set to leave the NDA.
The BJP, however, viewed his statement differently, saying that Chirag meant to say that his party would contest as an "NDA constituent".
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