Patna: In a key political development following the Bihar legislative council elections, newly elected Independent Members of the Legislative Council (MLCs) Banshidhar Brajwasi and Rahul Raj formally extended their support to the ruling BJP on Saturday, the party said in a statement.Both also attended the BJP legislature party meeting at the party’s state headquarters in Patna.BJP state president Sanjay Saraogi formally welcomed the two lawmakers into the party fold in the presence of chief minister (CM) Samrat Choudhary, BJP national general secretary and Bihar incharge Harish Dwivedi, and national secretaries Rohan Gupta and Sangeeta Yadav.Their support is strategically significant as both MLCs won their respective seats by defeating official candidates of BJP’s key NDA ally, JD(U). In the Tirhut Graduates’ constituency, Brajwasi secured a second consecutive term by defeating JD(U)’s Abhishek Jha by a margin of more than 9,000 votes. Rahul Raj, a former BJP worker who contested as an Independent after being denied the party ticket, won the Saran Teachers’ constituency, defeating JD(U)’s Anand Pushkar by more than 1,800 votes. The two had earlier met CM Samrat at his residence, days after the results were declared.The recent council elections for eight seats saw BJP and JD(U) follow a 4:4 seat-sharing arrangement. Of the four seats it contested, BJP won two — Tirhut Teachers’ and Kosi Graduates’ — while JD(U) secured only the Patna Graduates’ seat. Of the remaining seats, Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) won the Patna Teachers’ and Darbhanga Graduates’ constituencies, while Prashant Kishor’s Jan Suraaj wrested the Darbhanga Teachers’ seat from Congress veteran Madan Mohan Jha.While senior BJP functionaries welcomed the support, which effectively strengthens the party’s numbers in the Upper House, JD(U) leaders have maintained silence over its ally inducting candidates who defeated its official nominees.
