Patna,(BiharTimes): The by-election to the Maharajganj Lok Sabha seat scheduled to be held on June 2 will be an acid test for the NDA as the non-stop wrangling between BJP and Janata Dal (United) had created a lot of suspicion, mistrust and tension within the rank and file of both the parties.

Even if the leaders of the two NDA constituents now bury the past and put up a united front it is doubtful whether the workers of the two parties would work unitedly to ensure victory of Prashant Kumar Shahi, who is Bihar’s education minister and Janata Dal (United)’s candidate.

Honestly speaking he is not a politician by training and was appointed the minister by Nitish Kumar after his Nov 2010 Assembly victory. Before that Shahi was the Advocate General of Bihar. He was subsequently elected to the Upper House of the Bihar Assembly.

Thus it would be his first electoral battle and that too with seasoned JD(U)-turn-RJD man, Prabhunath Singh. The seat got vacant after the death of RJD’s Uma Shankar Singh. He defeated Prabhunath in 2009 election when the latter was in Janata Dal (United).

If RJD retains this seat it would be a big morale booster for its chief Lalu Yadav as it has repeatedly been facing defeats. The BJP would in that case be quick to remind Janata Dal (United) of its importance. At present many BJP leaders are bent upon teaching Nitish Kumar a lesson and are in no mood to work for Shahi.

Several BJP leaders have accused Nitish of treating them worse than street dogs so they are reluctant to ensure victory for his candidate.

Janata Dal (United) on its own is also working overtime to show to the world that it can win any election without the help of BJP. If it really wins it would force the BJP to reconcile.

The by-poll will be a rehearsal for the 2014 Lok Sabha election. If the alliance between BJP and JD(U) actually breaks down than it would be a great challenge for both the parties as in that case they both will put up candidates on all the 40 seats further dividing the NDA votes.