Kanhaiya Kumar to contest from Begusarai as CPI candidate

In Begusarai, a stronghold of the CPI, Kumar will be facing Bharatiya Janata Party leader and Union minister Giriraj Singh.

A day after grand alliance talks with Left parties failed in Bihar, Communist Party of India on Sunday confirmed that former president of the Jawaharlal Nehru University students' union, Kanhaiya Kumar will contest the upcoming Lok Sabha elections from Begusarai constituency.

"Kanhaiya Kumar will contest from Begusarai Lok Sabha constituency," CPI leader Suravaram Sudhakar Reddy said.

In Begusarai, a stronghold of the CPI, Kumar will be facing Bharatiya Janata Party leader and Union minister Giriraj Singh whose Nawada seat went to the National Democratic Alliance ally Lok Janshakti Party.

The announcement comes a day after the opposition's mahagathbandhan (grand alliance) allotted just one seat to the Left parties in Bihar.

However, Loktantrik Janata Dal chief Sharad Yadav, who will contest upcoming Lok Sabha elections from Rashtriya Janata Dal symbol, said that Kanhaiya Kumar has assured him that he will "try" to include Left parties in the grand alliance.

"He (Kanhaiya Kumar) said, I have tried my best to include Left parties. This time my role is not so important to seal alliances in Bihar, again I will try to include Left parties in alliance," Yadav said.

On Saturday, the Congress and the RJD announced their seat-sharing arrangement in Bihar.

According to the alliance arrangement, the RJD will contest on 20 seats, the Congress on 9 seats, Jitan Ram Manjhi-led Hindustani Awam Morcha-Secular on 3 seats, the Rashtriya Lok Samta Party on 5 , the Vikasheel Insaaf Party on 3 seats and the CPI on one seat in Bihar.

Bihar will see polling in seven phases.

The dates of polling in Bihar will be on April 11, 18, 23, 29 and May 6, 12 and 19.

The counting of votes will take place on May 23.

In the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, the RJD won only four seats and the Congress two.

The Janata Dal-United, which contested separately, won two seats.

The BJP-led NDA won 31 seats, with the former's tally being 22.