PATNA, Jan. 24 -- In a clear effort to scotch weeks of speculation about possible defections, all six of the Congress party's MLAs from Bihar met with national president Mallikarjun Kharge at his Delhi residence on Friday. Rahul Gandhi, the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, joined the gathering, signalling strong backing from the party's top leadership. The meeting comes at a sensitive time for the party in the state. Following the last assembly elections, where the party was reduced to just six seats in the 243-member House, rumours have circulated that the entire group might switch to the ruling NDA - particularly the JD(U) - as part of efforts to make the state "Congress-free." The NDA, led by chief minister Nitish Kumar, retained power with a thumping majority, while the opposition Mahagathbandhan struggled for survival in the polls. During the discussions, the MLAs - Abidur Rahman (Araria), Qamrul Hoda (Kishanganj), Manohar Prasad Singh (Manihari), Manoj Biswas (Forbesganj), Abhishek Ranjan (Chanpatia), and Surendra Prasad Kushwaha (Valmikinagar) - firmly rejected any talks of leaving the party. They described the defection talk as groundless, blaming it on certain NDA leaders and parts of the media trying to create unease. Rahul Gandhi reportedly told the group not to feel discouraged by the party's smaller presence in the assembly. He stressed the need to build direct connections with ordinary people by raising grassroots issues, and promised to stand by them fully. "I'll come to Bihar whenever you need me," he is said to have assured them, adding that the party is committed to rebuilding its organisation across the state in the months ahead. Kharge, meanwhile, directed Bihar Congress president Rajesh Ram to finalise the selection of the Congress Legislature Party leader through consensus as soon as possible. One senior leader who was present said the name would almost certainly be announced before the budget session kicks off on February 2. Several other prominent figures attended, including AICC general secretary (organisation) KC Venugopal, Bihar in-charge Krishna Allavaru, AICC in-charge of NSUI Kanhaiya Kumar and others were present in the meeting....