<p>In a first, <a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-general-elections-2019/flop-show-for-congress-rjd-in-bihar-says-pollsters-nda-to-win-big-219966">Rashtriya Janata Dal</a> (RJD) could not manage to win even a single seat in the 17th Lok Sabha elections which concluded on May 19.</p>

<p>The RJD, led by Lalu Prasad Yadav's son Tejashwi Yadav, fought the election in alliance with the Congress and others. The party, which contested on 20 seats, didn't manage to win even a single seat this election and nose-dived from 27 in 2014 to nil in 2019.</p>

<p>Constituted in 1997, the RJD received the status of the recognised national-level party in 2008. In its first election in 1998, it had won 17 seats in Bihar.</p>

<p>Meanwhile, Congress, which is the part of the<a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-general-elections-2019/lok-sabha-election-results-2019-up-numbers-show-mahagathbandhan-a-failed-experiment-221047"> RJD-led mahagathbandhan</a>, only managed to win one seat in Bihar.</p>

<p>The grand old party had fielded contestant on nine seats.</p>

<p>Besides, Rashtriya Lok Samta Party (RLSP) and the Hindustani Awam Morcha (HAM), which contested on five and three seats respectively, also failed to open its account.</p>

<p>The ruling BJP-JDU-LJP alliance in Bihar achieved a resounding victory in the Lok Sabha elections with BJP winning 17 seats, while its allies Janata Dal-United (JDU) getting 16 seats and Ram Vilas Paswan`s Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) winning six seats. In all, the alliance won 37 seats.</p>

<p><strong>Watch:&nbsp;Nitish kumar secures all 17 LS seats in Bihar&nbsp;</strong></p>

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In a first, Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) could not manage to win even a single seat in the 17th Lok Sabha elections which concluded on May 19. The RJD, led by Lalu Prasad Yadav's son Tejashwi Yadav, fought the election in alliance with the Congress and others.

In a first, Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) could not manage to win even a single seat in the 17th Lok Sabha elections which concluded on May 19. The RJD, led by Lalu Prasad Yadav's son Tejashwi Yadav, fought the election in alliance with the Congress and others. The party, which contested on 20 seats, didn't manage to win even a single seat this election and nose-dived from 27 in 2014 to nil in 2019. Constituted in 1997, the RJD received the status of the recognised national-level party in 2008. In its first election in 1998, it had won 17 seats in Bihar. Meanwhile, Congress, which is the part of the RJD-led mahagathbandhan, only managed to win one seat in Bihar. The grand old party had fielded contestant on nine seats. Besides, Rashtriya Lok Samta Party (RLSP) and the Hindustani Awam Morcha (HAM), which contested on five and three seats respectively, also failed to open its account. The ruling BJP-JDU-LJP alliance in Bihar achieved a resounding victory in the Lok Sabha elections with BJP winning 17 seats, while its allies Janata Dal-United (JDU) getting 16 seats and Ram Vilas Paswan`s Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) winning six seats. In all, the alliance won 37 seats. Watch: Nitish kumar secures all 17 LS seats in Bihar ×

Lok Sabha election result 2019: In a first, Lalu Prasad Yadav led-RJD draw a blank in Bihar

<p>Hindustani Awam Morcha president Jitan Ram Manjhi on Saturday said he would go to Ranchi next week to meet<a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/irctc-scam-delhi-court-grants-interim-bail-to-rjd-chief-lalu-prasad-185433"> RJD national president Lalu Prasad</a> for discussing seat-sharing in Bihar ahead of Lok Sabha polls in 2019.</p>

<p>He sought to distance himself from the aggressive stance of HAM state president Vrishan Patel, who had earlier this week said the party would boycott the general elections if it was not given a "sizeable" number of seats to contest.</p>

<p>HAM is part of the opposition alliance in Bihar along with RJD, Congress, RLSP, VIP and LJD.</p>

<p>Prasad is in jail in Ranchi, after his conviction in three fodder scam cases. He is lodged at the Rajendra Instute of Medical Sciences on health grounds.</p>

<p>Manjhi said only three people are allowed to meet the RJD supremo on Saturdays. "Today, his younger son Tejashwi Yadav and our alliance partners Upendra Kushwaha of RLSP and Mukesh Sahni of Vikasshil Insan Party (VIP) met him. Next week it is going to be me", he said.</p>

<p>Responding to queries on Patel's seat-sharing stance, Manjhi said, "He may have vented his anxieties resulting from unsubstantiated media reports. We enjoy the support of 90 per cent of Dalits in the state. This is a fact which the RJD leadership is aware of."</p>

<p>It was due to HAM's support that the RJD won the Jehanabad assembly by-poll and the Araria Lok Sahba seat in March by a good margin, even though a sizeable number of Yadavs, its traditional supporters, had gravitated to the BJP, Manjhi, a former chief minister, claimed.</p>

<p>The opposition alliance is now reportedly exploring the possibility of an electoral understanding with the Left parties in order to take on the NDA which has been bolstered by <a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/ahead-of-lok-sabha-polls-nitish-holds-jdu-meeting-in-patna-187291">Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's</a> return to the grouping last year.</p>

<p>Kumar heads the JD(U).</p>

<p>Seat sharing among the opposition parties in Bihar is likely to be a thorny issue.</p>

<p>Tejashwi Yadav, who is seen as Prasad's political successor, had sought to downplay the difficulties being faced by the Mahagathbandhan.</p>

<p>He had told reporters in Ranchi, "Our (Mahagathbandhan's) priority is to defeat the NDA. Whoever seems to be in the best position to defeat the BJP-led coalition in a given seat will be fielded as the joint candidate of the Mahagathbandhan".&nbsp;</p>


Hindustani Awam Morcha president Jitan Ram Manjhi on Saturday said he would go to Ranchi next week to meet RJD national president Lalu Prasad for discussing seat-sharing in Bihar ahead of Lok Sabha polls in 2019.

Hindustani Awam Morcha president Jitan Ram Manjhi on Saturday said he would go to Ranchi next week to meet RJD national president Lalu Prasad for discussing seat-sharing in Bihar ahead of Lok Sabha polls in 2019. He sought to distance himself from the aggressive stance of HAM state president Vrishan Patel, who had earlier this week said the party would boycott the general elections if it was not given a "sizeable" number of seats to contest. HAM is part of the opposition alliance in Bihar along with RJD, Congress, RLSP, VIP and LJD. Prasad is in jail in Ranchi, after his conviction in three fodder scam cases. He is lodged at the Rajendra Instute of Medical Sciences on health grounds. Manjhi said only three people are allowed to meet the RJD supremo on Saturdays. "Today, his younger son Tejashwi Yadav and our alliance partners Upendra Kushwaha of RLSP and Mukesh Sahni of Vikasshil Insan Party (VIP) met him. Next week it is going to be me", he said. Responding to queries on Patel's seat-sharing stance, Manjhi said, "He may have vented his anxieties resulting from unsubstantiated media reports. We enjoy the support of 90 per cent of Dalits in the state. This is a fact which the RJD leadership is aware of." It was due to HAM's support that the RJD won the Jehanabad assembly by-poll and the Araria Lok Sahba seat in March by a good margin, even though a sizeable number of Yadavs, its traditional supporters, had gravitated to the BJP, Manjhi, a former chief minister, claimed. The opposition alliance is now reportedly exploring the possibility of an electoral understanding with the Left parties in order to take on the NDA which has been bolstered by Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's return to the grouping last year. Kumar heads the JD(U). Seat sharing among the opposition parties in Bihar is likely to be a thorny issue. Tejashwi Yadav, who is seen as Prasad's political successor, had sought to downplay the difficulties being faced by the Mahagathbandhan. He had told reporters in Ranchi, "Our (Mahagathbandhan's) priority is to defeat the NDA. Whoever seems to be in the best position to defeat the BJP-led coalition in a given seat will be fielded as the joint candidate of the Mahagathbandhan".

Jitan Ram Manjhi to meet Lalu Yadav for seat-sharing talks next week

<p>Former Bihar chief minister Jitan Ram Manjhi quit BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) on Wednesday and joined Rasthtriya Janata Dal-led Grand Alliance. Manjhi had on Sunday demanded a Rajya Sabha seat for his party, the the Hindustani Awam Morcha, and threatened that he would not support the BJP-led coalition if his demands are not met.</p>

<p>&quot;The NDA must announce at least one Hindustani Awam Morcha (HAM) leader among its candidates for the six Rajya Sabha seats in Bihar. If that does not happen, our party workers will not campaign for candidates of the coalition in the by-polls,&quot; Manjhi had said.</p>

<p>&quot;He has been an old friend to my parents, we welcome him,&quot; RJD&#39;s Tejashwi Yadav said.</p>

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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">Former CM Jitan Ram Manjhi quits NDA, joins <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Bihar?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Bihar</a>&#39;s &#39;grand-alliance&#39;, addressing the media along with Manjhi, RJD&#39;s Tejashwi Yadav said, &#39;he has been an old friend to my parents, we welcome him.&#39; <a href="https://t.co/EfghzUQ3WX">pic.twitter.com/EfghzUQ3WX</a></p>
&mdash; ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/968724753358913537?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 28, 2018</a></blockquote>
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<p>The Rajya Sabha election is slated for March 23.</p>

<p>The by-polls for Araria Lok Sabha seat and Jahanabad and Bhabhua Assembly seats are scheduled to be held on March 11.</p>

<p>Manjhi said, &quot;For more than a year and a half, I and my party have been working tirelessly for strengthening the NDA in Bihar. But as the saying goes - even a mother does not feed her child until he or she cries and demands attention.&quot;</p>

<p>Manjhi had formed HAM after walking out of Nitish Kumar&#39;s Janata Dal (United) JD(U) in protest against the alleged pressure to step down as chief minister in 2015 and make way for the return of Nitish. He had fought the assembly polls held the same year as part of the NDA which lost to the grand alliance comprising JD(U), RJD and Congress.</p>

<p>Recently, the former chief minister had expressed the wish that his party be allowed to contest by-poll from Jahanabad Assembly seat, but withdrew the demand following alleged cold response from the BJP. The seat is now being contested by the JD(U), which had initially announced that it would not contest any of the three seats going for by-polls.</p>


Manjhi had formed Hindustani Awam Morcha after walking out of Nitish Kumar's Janata Dal (United) JD(U) in protest against the alleged pressure to step down as chief minister in 2015.

Former Bihar chief minister Jitan Ram Manjhi quit BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) on Wednesday and joined Rasthtriya Janata Dal-led Grand Alliance. Manjhi had on Sunday demanded a Rajya Sabha seat for his party, the the Hindustani Awam Morcha, and threatened that he would not support the BJP-led coalition if his demands are not met. "The NDA must announce at least one Hindustani Awam Morcha (HAM) leader among its candidates for the six Rajya Sabha seats in Bihar. If that does not happen, our party workers will not campaign for candidates of the coalition in the by-polls," Manjhi had said. "He has been an old friend to my parents, we welcome him," RJD's Tejashwi Yadav said. Former CM Jitan Ram Manjhi quits NDA, joins #Bihar's 'grand-alliance', addressing the media along with Manjhi, RJD's Tejashwi Yadav said, 'he has been an old friend to my parents, we welcome him.' pic.twitter.com/EfghzUQ3WX — ANI (@ANI) February 28, 2018 × The Rajya Sabha election is slated for March 23. The by-polls for Araria Lok Sabha seat and Jahanabad and Bhabhua Assembly seats are scheduled to be held on March 11. Manjhi said, "For more than a year and a half, I and my party have been working tirelessly for strengthening the NDA in Bihar. But as the saying goes - even a mother does not feed her child until he or she cries and demands attention." Manjhi had formed HAM after walking out of Nitish Kumar's Janata Dal (United) JD(U) in protest against the alleged pressure to step down as chief minister in 2015 and make way for the return of Nitish. He had fought the assembly polls held the same year as part of the NDA which lost to the grand alliance comprising JD(U), RJD and Congress. Recently, the former chief minister had expressed the wish that his party be allowed to contest by-poll from Jahanabad Assembly seat, but withdrew the demand following alleged cold response from the BJP. The seat is now being contested by the JD(U), which had initially announced that it would not contest any of the three seats going for by-polls.

Former Bihar chief minister Jitam Ram Manjhi quits NDA, joins 'Grand Alliance'