PATNA, Oct. 1 -- After three rounds of marathon meetings in New Delhi, the screening committee for the Congress party has shortlisted as many as 66-67 out of 243 assembly seats to contest under the banner of the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA). Even though a speculative alliance formula making rounds in various circles suggests that the party may get 55-60 seats in the final arrangement. The first round of screening committee meetings, held on August 20-21 under chairman Ajay Maken, involved initial assessments of winnable seats based on ground reports from the yatra and local feedback. Attendees included AICC in-charge for Bihar Krishna Allavaru and BPCC chief Rajesh Ram, who emphasised prioritising constituencies where Congress had performed strongly in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls. The second round, on September 20, refined the list by incorporating inputs from alliance partners, amid discussions on accommodating smaller outfits like the VIP and Left parties. The last round of meetings, chaired by screening committee chairman Ajay Maken, was held on September 28. It was attended by popular Muslim leader Imran Pratapgarhi, Krishna Allavaru, Rajesh Ram, and leaders of the legislature party in the state assembly and council, Shakeel Ahmad Khan and Madan Mohan Jha. Party leaders have been tight-lipped about matter of discussion on the number of seats the party has planned to agree on in the coalition agreement, but some insiders say that the party may finally agree on 55-60 seats so as to give in seats to smaller alliance partners like VIP, JMM, etc. RJD, as expected, is likely to claim the mammoth share with around 140 seats. A senior party leader said that the exact number of seats each partner of the alliance would be determined in the final round of discussions with constituent leaders, including leader of the opposition in Bihar Tejashwi Prasad Yadav, Dipankar Bhattacharya of the CPI(ML) Liberation, and Congress top brass Mallikarjun Kharge and Rahul Gandhi, a few days after Dussehra. "Pasupati Kumar Paras-led Rashtriya Lok Janshakti Party (RLJP) and Hemant Soren-led Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) would also be given adequate seats to contest under the INDIA bloc banner," said a senior RJD leader, adding that the RJD and Congress might have to forego a few seats to accommodate the new allies. "The Congress' screening committee has also selected two to three candidates against each shortlisted seat. The seats and candidates will be finally decided by the central election committee (CEC), which will be held after final allocation of seats," said the Congress leader present in the screening committee meeting, adding that the party was not adamant about fighting on more seats. The screening process kicked off in mid-August, building on the momentum from the Congress-led Voter Adhikar Yatra, a 16-day statewide campaign spearheaded by Rahul Gandhi that concluded on September 1 in Patna. As the INDIA bloc races to finalize its seat-sharing formula before the Election Commission's poll schedule announcement, expected soon, the left parties - CPI, CPI(ML) Liberation, and CPM - are collectively demanding at least 75 seats, citing their strong grassroots presence in rural areas....