RJD Rank And File Turns Against Congress After Rajya Sabha Poll Defeat

Rajya Sabha election for one seat in Bihar led to a victory for the NDA after three Congress MLAs and their colleague from the Rashtriya Janata Dal skipped the voting. The situation has led to massive misgivings among the rank and file of the RJD, who are now blaming the Congress for the defeat. 

The numbers in the Bihar assembly had already ensured the victory of JD(U)'s Nitish Kumar and Ramnath Thakur, Nitin Nabin and the BJP's Shivam Kumar. The fifth seat, for which Upendra Kushwaha -- chief of NDA ally Rashtriya Lok Manch -- and RJD's AD Singh were contesting, went to the NDA.

The NDA had earlier asserted that Kushwaha will win. 

The Grand Alliance, which has 35 MLAs, had enlisted the support of five MLAs from the AIMIM and one from Mayawati's Bahujan Samaj Party to get the required count of 41. After initial hesitation, the AIMIM eventually agreed and cast its votes in favor of the RJD and the BSP legislator also stood by the RJD. 

But three of the six Congress MLAs -- Manoj Biswas, Manohar Prasad Singh, and Surendra Kushwaha -- failed to appear for voting and the RJD's Faisal Rahman went missing as well. Surendra Kushwaha has previously been associated with Upendra Kushwaha. 

Earlier, the RJD had sent Faisal Rahman's father, Motiur Rahman, to Rajya Sabha. 

Congress Blamed

Now there is intense speculation across Bihar that, once again, Tejashwi Yadav has had to face defeat due to the Congress. 

The Yadav junior had worked tirelessly to win over the AIMIM. He even attended an Iftaar party hosted by AIMIM leader Akhtarul Iman, despite the fact that the two parties had contested against each other during the assembly elections in the state. 

Read: The 4 Mahagathbandhan MLAs Who Skipped Rajya Sabha Voting In Bihar

He also successfully persuaded the BSP's sole MLA -- who was not even part of the Grand Alliance -- to support him. He also consistently maintained the support of IP Gupta, the lone MLA from the IIP.

It was the Congress which failed to keep their MLAs in line. Sources said the "entire state of Bihar" was aware that these three Congress MLAs were disgruntled and that it was puzzling that the party never reached out to them.

Tejashwi Yadav, however, claimed that the BJP has engaged in horse-trading during the Rajya Sabha elections -- "specifically those who did not vote in our favor, and those who remained absent".

"We are people who stand ready to fight against them. Our battle against them will continue," he added. 

The Congress RJD Not on Same Page

The two allies had appeared out of sync during the Bihar Assembly elections as well. The Congress dragged out the seat-sharing negotiations with the RJD for so long, that up to the very last moment, it remained unclear which party would contest which seat. 

The result was that on half-a-dozen seats, candidates from both RJD and the Congress ended up contesting against each other -- and subsequently lost. 

Read: Why Rajya Sabha Election In 3 States Has Become Opposition's Loyalty Test

The momentum that Congress's Rahul Gandhi and RJD's Tejashwi Yadav had built in favor of the Grand Alliance across Bihar -- through initiatives like the "Vote Adhikar Yatra" -- was completely squandered due to the delays and obstinacy surrounding the seat-sharing process. 

When the Congress finally distributed tickets in Bihar, the party headquarters witnessed protests, demonstrations, and even physical altercations, leading to allegations that "sleeper cells" of the BJP were operating within the Congress party.

Now, the repercussions of that internal discord have become evident in the Rajya Sabha elections.

During the Bihar elections, when Tejashwi Yadav sensed that he was falling behind due to his allies in the Grand Alliance, he shifted his strategy and embarked on a solo campaign tour. 

But by then it was too late. The NDA had successfully distributed cash directly to women voters -- a move for which the RJD leader failed to provide an effective answer.

When the election results were declared, it turned out that Tejashwi Yadav had managed to secure just enough seats to qualify for the position of Leader of the Opposition.

Will Action Be Taken?

There is little chance of action against the MLAs who skipped voting. This is because even if a legislator is expelled from the party, their assembly membership in will remain intact. So neither the Congress nor the RJD is likely to expel their legislators.