Dimapur, Jan 20: Nitish Kumar- led Janata Dal-United (JD-U) has decided to move from home turf to contest the upcoming Nagaland Assembly polls, scheduled in the last week of February.
After the party’s success in Bihar elections, the JDU has decided to field their candidates in other state elections.
Speaking to media persons, Afaque Ahmed Khan, the party’s national general secretary and in-charge of the northeast, said, “After parliamentary board meeting, we will decide on how many seats we will contest in Nagaland assembly polls.”
“We contested on 14 seats in 2018. This time, we have decided to contest at least as many or more. People are looking at us as an alternative to the BJP in the Northeast. Our party is there and it is working to develop our base,” he informed.
He further said, “We are thinking of a pre-poll understanding with like-minded parties for a post-poll alliance.”
The party has fielded candidates in the state since 2003 when it contested on 13 of the total 60 seats and won three, with a vote share of 5.8%.
Meanwhile, JD-U is hoping for success in Nagaland to fulfil its long-standing ambition of getting a national party status.
“We already have state party status in three states – Bihar, Manipur and Arunachal Pradesh. If we perform well, that would be an added bonanza,” Khan said.
