Patna: Ruling alliance partners Janata Dal United and the BJP have agreed for a 50-50 seat sharing formula in Bihar where the state polls are schedule d for later this month, reports said.
Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's JDU will get 122 of the 243 seats while the BJP will contest on 121, NDTV reported quoting sources.
Official announcement is expected soon.
Kumar's party will accommodate Jitan Ram Manjhi's Hindustani Awam Morcha within its quota. The BJP will give seats to Ram Vilas Paswan's Lok Janshakti Party from its share. However, it is not sure whether the LJP will remain in the alliance or not amid a prolonged feud between Kumar and Paswan's son Chirag Paswan.
The agreement in the ruling coalition came a day after filing of nominations for the first phase of voting started on Thursday. The last date for filing nominations is October 8.
Voting will take place in Bihar on October 28, November 3 and 7 and the results will be announced on November 10.
On Saturday, the Grand Alliance, headed by the Rashtriya Janata Dal, announced its seat sharing formula. As per the agreement, RJD will contest on 144 seats while Congress has been given 70. Among the Left parties, the CPI(ML) has been given 19 seats, followed by CPI (six) and CPM (four).
