With the split in Janata Dal formalised yesterday with former Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda and Sharad Yadav leading the two factions, the focus has now shifted to the ability of the two Dals to strike a bargain with the BJP and the Congress.
The J H Patel-Sharad Yadav Janata Dal may find it easier to strike a deal with the BJP in Bihar but may face bitter opposition from the BJP in Karnataka.
The faction led by Gowda, however, may have to align with Sharad Pawar's Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) if the Congress cold shoulders Gowda. The party consists of those who have said they would have nothing to do with the BJP.
While sources within the BJP claimed that with the split formalised, the BJP was in a better bargaining position as followers of the Sharad Pawar-Patel group had nowhere to go. Howev