Neglected in ticket distribution, a group of Congress leaders in Bihar on Saturday (Oct 18, 2025) accused state Congress chief Krishna Allavar and Bihar Pradesh Congress Committee (BPCC) president Rajesh Ram of selling tickets.
At a press conference, a group of party functionaries, including a sitting MLA and a former MLA, said that party president Mallikarjun Kharge and Rahul Gandhi should intervene.
Anand Madhab, spokesperson and chairman of BPCC’s research department, has resigned with immediate effect.
“Unfortunately, it seems that loyalty, dedication, hard work and simplicity are no longer valued attributes in our party. I have served the party with unswerving integrity and honesty over the last decade, consistently carrying out the tasks assigned to me. My inability to indulge in bribes and satisfy the egos of a few individuals,” Mr Khahab said in the letter, which Mr Khahab appeared to thwart.
“No respect for dedicated workers”
He further said, “The influence of corporate interests like Adani and Ambani seems to have come before performance, with party decisions dominated by the ‘Mera Admi, Tera Admi’ (MATA – My Men Your Men) theory. Despite my clean record, education and dedicated service, including remarkable efforts during the COVID-19 pandemic, I have been denied a ticket four times assembly.”
Mr Madhab added: “I am afraid that the party’s approach to ticket distribution will backfire and we may struggle to achieve even double digits in the elections. The success of a political party depends on its principles and discipline, not on the whims and fancies of a select few. Unfortunately, the egos of some individuals seem to have displaced these core values.”
Khagaria MLA Chhatrapati Yadav was replaced by a new face, Chandan Yadav, and former MLA Gajanand Shahi, who had lost the last election by a margin of 113 votes, was replaced by Trishuldari Singh. The two alleged that there was no respect for dedicated workers in the party.
Sudhir Kumar alias Bunty Choudhary, who contested in the last election from Sikandra constituency, was also present at the press conference.
‘Tribe for ticket distribution’
Making allegations against Mr. Allavaru, Mr. Chhatrapati: “Responsible Bihar Congress threatened state president Rajesh Ram and Congress Legislature Party (CLP) leader Shakeel Ahmed Khan to support him in his wrongdoing.”
Mr. Shahi said, “I lost the election by only 113 votes. But people who lost by more votes were given tickets. We would like to investigate who did it and why?”
They said that earlier the list of candidates was released before the tickets were released, but now the ticket is released first and then the names are announced.
A few days ago, Congress workers from Bikram constituency confronted Mr. Allavar, Mr. Ram and Mr. Khan when they arrived at the Patna airport and alleged corruption in the distribution of air tickets.
All three were seen fleeing the fight as tensions escalated. Mr Khan was found surrounded by a protesting crowd before he managed to flee in his car.
Dual nomination
Amid tensions over ticket distribution, Nabin Kumar of Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) filed nomination papers on behalf of two political parties, RJD and Vikassheel Insaan Party (VIP), to contest from Alamnagar constituency.
Asked about the dual nomination, Mr. Kumar said he only did what the party chief told him and would withdraw the single nomination as soon as he was instructed.
There was also resentment in the RJD camp. Shantanu Yadav, son of former Union minister late Sharad Yadav, filed his protest after he was denied a ticket from Madhepura.
Meanwhile, the RJD has announced that it will withdraw its candidate Afzal Ali Khan from Gaura-Bauram, saying that the VIP seat fell during the seat distribution. VIP chief Mukesh Sahani’s younger brother Santosh Sahani filed his nomination for the post on Friday.
Published – 18 Oct 2025 20:54 IST
