JANATA DAL

Asked if Bihar, with two strong regional parties in Yadav-led RJD and Kumar-led Janata Dal (U) besides the formidable BJP, the Left and the Congress, has space for one more political party, Political strategist Prashant Kishor told PTI that the state has more space than other states.

Elections in Odisha will be held simultaneously with the Lok Sabha elections and will be completed in four phases, starting from Phase one on May 13, Phase two on May 20, Phase three on May 25 and the final phase on June 1.

The Rajya Sabha welcomed 12 new members who took oath administered by Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar. The oath ceremony took place in the presence of Deputy Chairman Harivansh and Secretary General P K Mody at Parliament House. The new members include representatives from the BJP, Congress, and RJD, with their tenure starting from April 3. They represent states such as Bihar, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka, and Uttar Pradesh. The addition of these members follows the retirement of 54 members on April 2 and 3.

Biju Janata Dal (BJD) president and Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik unveiled the second list of candidates for the Odisha Assembly elections and the third list for the Lok Sabha polls. Patnaik disclosed the names of 27 assembly election candidates and five Lok Sabha candidates. The BJD has now nominated 20 candidates for the state's 21 Lok Sabha seats, with no announcement yet for the Balasore Lok Sabha constituency.

A clash broke out between Janata Dal (Secular) JDS and Bharatiya Janata Party workers at a joint coordination meeting in Tumakuru district on Monday. The confrontation occurred on stage during an election meeting for alliance candidate Somanna in Thuruvekere.

Bihar is set to witness a seven-phase poll for its 40 Lok Sabha seats. The first phase will see voting on four seats, followed by five seats each from Phase 2 to Phase 5. The last two phases, 6 and 7, will have elections on eight seats each.

Bihar will witness polling for 40 Lok Sabha seats across all seven phases. In Phase 1, voting will be held on four seats. The state will witness polling on 5 seats each from Phase 2 to Phase 5. In Phases 6 and 7, elections will be held on 8 seats each.

Essel Mining and Industries, owned by Aditya Birla group, has emerged as the single biggest contributor to Biju Janata Dal's electoral funds, providing Rs 174.5 crore to the political party, showed the data on electoral bonds released by the Election Commission. Out of the total bond purchases of Rs 223.5 crore over several years, the company donated Rs 49 crore to BJP.

BJP declared it would independently contest Lok Sabha and state Assembly elections, bypassing alliance with BJD. State president Manmohan Samal confirmed BJP's solo run on Twitter. Appreciating BJD's support for national initiatives, BJP expressed concerns over welfare schemes not reaching Odisha. With 21 Lok Sabha and 147 Assembly seats in sight, BJP aims to fulfill Odisha's aspirations under Modi's leadership, despite BJD's amicable stance post-2009 split from NDA.

The BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) in Bihar has finalized its seat-sharing agreement for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, but this decision has sparked concerns about the alliance's unity. Under the agreement, the BJP will contest 17 seats, while Nitish Kumar's JD(U) will fight on 16 seats. The LJP, led by Chirag Paswan, has been allocated 5 seats, excluding Union Minister Pashupati Paras, leading to potential factional contests within the LJP. Despite Chirag Paswan's strong relationship with the BJP, Paras has warned of rebellion, threatening the alliance's prospects in Bihar.

Abdul Bari Siddiqui empowers Lalu Prasad to decide RJD's Lok Sabha candidates and explore alliances. No discussions on specific disgruntled NDA allies or merger speculations with Jan Adhikar Party.

BJP and BJD speculate alliance. State BJP president Samal discusses candidates in Delhi. Central Leadership to decide candidates. Naveen Niwas meeting discusses Puri LS. Uncertainty on alliance post Modi's visit.

​​ Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw clarified that the donations were made on a nominal scale, adhering to the principle of funding election campaigns with transparent and legitimate sources of income, commonly known as 'white money.'

As the Election Commission on Sunday made public hundreds of sealed-cover disclosures submitted to it by various political parties, filings made by Bihar's ruling party showed that it got electoral bonds totalling more than Rs 24 crore.

The Rashtriya Janata Dal will back Rabri Devi for another term in the legislative council. The party will field four candidates, including Rabri Devi, and support Shashi Yadav of CPI(ML) Liberation. Other RJD candidates are Abdul Bari Siddiqui, Syed Faisal Ali, and Urmila Thakur. The ruling NDA has already filed nomination papers including Nitish Kumar, Khalid Anwar, and Santosh Suman.

Arabinda Dhali, the sitting MLA of Jayadev Assembly seat in Odisha, resigned from the Biju Janata Dal (BJD) and announced his decision to join the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) ahead of the Lok Sabha and Assembly elections in Odisha. Dhali, a five-term MLA, cited discomfort in the BJD and expressed admiration for Prime Minister Modi's work as reasons for his switch. He had previously been associated with the BJP and had also served as a minister in the BJD-BJP alliance government.

The entry of multi-millionaire real estate baron, D Kupendra Reddy, a Janata Dal (Secular)-BJP candidate has turned the elections to the fourth seat into a keen contest.

Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader Tejashwi Yadav launched a scathing attack on Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, accusing him of lacking vision and betraying the people's mandate by aligning with the BJP-led NDA. Yadav, who is embarking on a Jan Vishwas Yatra across Bihar, criticized Kumar for his political flip-flops and emphasized the RJD's commitment to serving the people. On the eve of the commencement of the tour, Yadav went live on Facebook late on Monday evening when he called Chief Minister Nitish Kumar an "old-fashioned leader who would do well to give up his chair on his own".