New Delhi, Apr 15 (PTI)  RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav met senior Congress leaders, including party president Mallikarjun Kharge and Rahul Gandhi, here on Tuesday to discuss the Mahagathbandhan’s preparedness for the upcoming Bihar assembly polls and exuded confidence that INDIA bloc government will be formed in the state.

Yadav, along with RJD MPs Manoj Jha and Sanjay Yadav, met the Congress leadership at Kharge’s residence.

He urged the media not to speculate over Mahagathbandhan’s (grand alliance) chief ministerial face and said the constituents would talk among themselves and decide.

“I don’t know why you all are worried about the CM face; we will talk among ourselves and decide. Things will become clear; you all should not worry about it,” the former deputy chief minister said.

Speaking to reporters after the meeting with Congress leaders, Yadav alleged that Bihar Chief Minister and JD(U) president Nitish Kumar has been “hijacked” by the BJP.

“Nitish ji has been hijacked. Amit Shah has been saying that they will fight elections under his leadership but does not say he will become the CM,” Yadav said.

He said the Congress and the RJD will sit in Patna to finalise a strategy and asserted that the INDIA bloc is committed to taking Bihar on the path of progress.

“The government that has been there for 20 years in Bihar and PM Modi is at the helm for 11 years… amid all this, Bihar has been given step-motherly treatment. Bihar is the most economically backward (state), with the lowest per capita income, lowest farmers’ income and highest migration. We all want to fight the elections on real issues,” Yadav said.

“We are in the opposition. It is our responsibility to highlight the limitations of the government to the public,” he said.

The RJD leader asserted that it is certain that there won’t be an NDA government in Bihar and an INDIA bloc government will be formed.

In a post in Hindi on X after the meeting, Kharge said that change is certain in Bihar at this time.

“Today we met the former Deputy Chief Minister of Bihar, Shri Tejashwi Yadav, and discussed the strength of the Mahagathbandhan. In the coming elections, we will give the people of Bihar a strong, positive, just and welfare option. Bihar will be freed from BJP and its opportunistic thug alliance,” he said.

“Youth, farmers, labourers, women, backward, extremely backward and all other sections of the society want a Mahagathbandhan government,” he asserted.

Gandhi also shared pictures from the deliberations on his WhatsApp channel and called it an “important meeting”.

Congress general secretary (organisation) K C Venugopal, Bihar Congress chief Rajesh Kumar and AICC Bihar in-charge Krishna Allavaru were also present in the meeting.

Speaking with reporters, Allavaru said today was the beginning of meetings, and a second one will be held in Patna on April 17.

“We will… (be) meeting all the parties (in the next meeting), creating a consensus and with a strong strategy,” he said.

Asked if Tejashwi would be CM’s face, Kumar did not give a direct reply and said, “We will sit on different dates and discuss all the points”.

The meeting comes amid indications that hard bargaining is on the cards among Mahagathbandhan allies, with all parties looking to strengthen their hold on the ground.

The meeting also comes weeks after Congress firmed up its strategy for the upcoming Bihar assembly polls at a meeting here.

Last month, the Congress said it would contest the elections as part of the INDIA bloc and asserted that the alliance partners would take a “collective decision” on the chief ministerial face.

The RJD-led Mahagathbandhan is looking to wrest power from the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) in the assembly polls, which are due later this year. PTI ASK AMJ ASK AMJ AMJ