Tejashwi likely to meet Kharge in Delhi today

Patna: RJD leader Tejashwi Prasad Yadav is likely to meet Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge in New Delhi on Tuesday. Congress MP Rahul Gandhi is also expected to join the meeting. The meeting assumes significance ahead of the Mahagathbandhan partners' scheduled gathering in Patna on April 17 to discuss strategy for the upcoming assembly elections.
While RJD MP Manoj Jha described the Delhi meeting as a "formal one" between long-standing allies, it is widely viewed as part of the Congress's preparations for the Bihar polls. The party's growing focus on Bihar is evident from the increased frequency of its leaders' visits to the state. Rahul Gandhi has already visited three times this year and Kharge is scheduled to be in Bihar for two days, on April 19 and April 20.
Kharge will address a rally in Buxar on April 19 and another in Patna the following day.
The Congress has maintained that it is not a "B-team" of any party and that the chief ministerial candidate for the opposition alliance will be decided only after the election. However, the RJD continues to project Tejashwi as the Mahagathbandhan's chief ministerial face.
After AICC in charge for Bihar, Krishna Allavaru, said that a collective decision would be taken on the CM face, senior Congress leader and former Rajasthan deputy CM Sachin Pilot also echoed the view during his recent visit to Patna for Kanhaiya Kumar's ‘Palayan Roko, Naukri Do' rally. "Everything will be decided after the victory in the assembly election," Pilot said.
Tuesday's meeting is expected to shape the agenda for the April 17 discussions where crucial matters such as seat-sharing and the alliance's leadership will likely be taken up. The meeting will also be the first formal interaction between AICC in charge Krishna Allavaru and Tejashwi. It will be attended by the newly appointed Bihar Congress president Rajesh Kumar.