Patna: Congress leader Shanawaz Alam fired a fresh salvo at Bihar ally RJD on Wednesday, saying his party would like to have “two deputy chief ministers, including a Muslim” if the coalition formed the next government in the state.
The AICC secretary, who is also the state’s co-in charge, was criticised by the domineering ally for “violating coalition dharma” even as the ruling NDA chuckled at the spat.
Alam, who is currently touring the state, told a gathering of Congress workers, “It is our resolve (sankalp) that if the next government is headed by Tejashwi Yadav, our party shall have two deputy CMs, one a Muslim and the other from upper castes (samanya varg).”
The Congress leader’s remark appeared aimed at reaching out to his party’s traditional support base, which includes Muslims, upper castes, and Dalits.
However, this did not sit well with the RJD, which has gained from the erosion of Congress’ Muslim base and has been particularly upset by Alam’s recent comment that the “strike rate in Lok Sabha polls” should be considered when finalising the seat-sharing formula for the Assembly elections.
Notably, in the general elections, the Congress won only three out of the nine seats it contested, whereas the RJD, which fielded 23 candidates, won only four.
