Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) chief and Union Minister Chirag Paswan said on Wednesday that the Mahagathbandhan in Bihar has completely fallen apart, with severe internal disputes plaguing the alliance. He also questioned Rahul Gandhi’s absence from the Bihar campaign and claimed that Congress sending Ashok Gehlot at this stage would make no difference in the polls.

Paswan said, “The Mahagathbandhan is torn by infighting and has already collapsed. If they still think they can come to power, it’s nothing short of wishful thinking. After so long, they’re finally addressing the media—where were they all this time? Ashok Gehlot is coming to Bihar only after everything is over in the alliance. Where is Rahul Gandhi? Shouldn’t senior leaders take responsibility and resolve issues maturely?”

He added that the people of Bihar have lost faith in the Mahagathbandhan and predicted a repeat of Haryana’s results, where the BJP benefited from Congress’s internal rifts. “If an alliance can’t manage its own members, how can it govern 14 crore people of Bihar? They neither know how to form nor maintain a coalition. Bihar’s people won’t trust them again,” Paswan said.

Meanwhile, Congress leader Ashok Gehlot arrived in Patna on Wednesday to meet RJD’s Tejashwi Yadav and address disputes within the Mahagathbandhan, particularly over overlapping seat announcements. Gehlot, appointed as Senior Election Observer by the AICC for the Bihar polls, was accompanied by state Congress in-charge Krishna Allavaru. Gehlot dismissed reports of major rifts, saying minor seat-related disagreements are normal in large alliances.

The 2025 Bihar elections will see the National Democratic Alliance (NDA)—comprising the BJP, JD(U), LJP(RV), HAM(S), and Rashtriya Lok Morcha—pitted against the RJD-led Mahagathbandhan, which includes Congress, CPI-ML, CPI, CPM, and VIP. Prashant Kishor’s Jan Suraaj has also announced plans to contest all 243 seats. Polling is scheduled for November 6 and 11, with results to be declared on November 14.