UPA alliance in Bihar sealed, announcement likely tomorrow

New Delhi, March 16 (PTI) Seat sharing among UPA allies -- LJP, RJD and Congress -- for 40 Lok Sabha seats of Bihar has been finalised and a formal announcement in this regard is likely to be made tomorrow, a senior UPA leader has said.
"The alliance will happen cent per cent and announcement could be made tomorrow," Union Minister and LJP chief Ram Vilas Paswan told reporters here.

Indicating a climbdown in the party's earlier stand of contesting either 16 seats in alliance or going alone on all forty seats of the state, Paswan said, "Some adjustments are made when talks happen." "Patliputra was also among the 16 seats we demanded but Ranjan Yadav whom we wanted to field there has now left," he said. Paswan added that alliance will be on honourable conditions and all allies would contest on equal footing.

Ruling out any possibility of friendly contests between RJD and LJP in the state, Paswan said, "I am opposed to friendly fights. Fight is never friendly." UPA sources said the last round of discussion among the three parties tonight will give a final touch on the seat-sharing agreement.

LJP could get 11 to 12 seats, Congress five to six and RJD 23 to 24 seats under the the agreement, they said.

Alliance talks have this time incorporated LJP's demand for a seat in Jharkhand, which it could either get or be compensated for this in Bihar. PTI