BJP to contest in 160 seats in Bihar

The BJP announced the seat-sharing arrangement within the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) for the Bihar Assembly polls on Monday after prolonged negotiations with hard-bargaining allies. The saffron outfit will contest in 160 seats, leaving 40 to the Lok Janshakti Party (LJP), 23 to the Rashtriya Lok Samata Party (RLSP) and the remaining 20 to the Hindustani Awam Morcha (HAM). Though the BJP wanted to go public on Saturday, after convincing LJP chief Ram Vilas Paswan and RLSP chief Upendra Kushwaha, it had to defer the announcement after former Bihar chief minister and HAM chief Jitan Ram Manjhi demanded the same number of seats as that of the LJP. - Deccan Herald