Special Correspondent

NEW DELHI: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has reached a seat-sharing agreement with the Janata Dal (United) in Jharkhand, conceding two Lok Sabha constituencies to it. The JD (U) has got the seats it wanted — Palamau (SC) and Chatra — from a total of 14 seats after BJP president Rajnath Singh and JD (U) chief Sharad Yadav talked over telephone on Friday morning.

That same evening, Mr. Yadav met the BJP prime ministerial candidate, L.K. Advani, urging him to leave three seats for the JD (U) in Uttar Pradesh — Meerut, Badaun and Salempur.

In 2004, the JD (U) was not able to win even a single seat in Jharkhand and the BJP won only one, Koderma. Later Koderma MP Babulal Marandi left the BJP. One reason given by the JD (U) for the disastrous performance by the two parties was a lack of a seat-sharing arrangement in the State in 2004, although the two parties had such an arrangement in Bihar.

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