Farmers Movement Archive

Bihar: Handling smaller allies a difficult task for NDA

PATNA: Barring one occasion when he also led the Grand Alliance to victory in Bihar in the 2015 assembly elections, it is for the first time that CM Nitish Kumar will be going to the polls heading an NDA coalition comprising more than two parties. Otherwise, Nitish’s JD(U) was with the BJP for 17 years since 1996 and contested the four assembly elections together in 2000, February 2005, November 2005 and 2010. Of the four occasions, Nitish formed the government with the BJP in the state in November 2005 and 2010, and again in July 2017 after quitting the RJD-led Grand Alliance. Today, the Bihar NDA comprises four parties with the JD(U) and BJP serving as the two poles. In sync with this polarity, the Hindustani Awam Morcha (Secular) led by former CM Jitan Ram Manjhi is on the side of Nitish, while the Lok Janshakti Party headed by Chirag Paswan, son of Union minister Ram Vilas Paswan, is with the BJP and has been declaredly toeing its line on all matters within the NDA. The scene in the Bihar NDA has got complicated after Rashtriya Lok Samata Party (RLSP) led by Upendra Kushwaha, former Union minister, hinted at walking out of the Grand Alliance. However, the state BJP is in an expectant mood on the issue of Kushwaha. “We have nothing against Kushwaha in particular. We always expected him and he was also Union minister. It is up to him to decide which way he must go and take a firm step,” state BJP spokesman Nikhil Anand said. The problem with Kushwaha is that he considers himself as “CM in waiting” and also wants respectable number of seats for the RLSP to contest. The JD(U) sources, however, said their party’s top brass was not sure about the step Kushwaha might take in the post-poll situation. Implicitly, Nitish would favour granting less number of seats to Kushwaha, at best. “We are sure that RJD’s CM face Tejashwi Prasad Yadav has ambition, but running a coalition with transparency would be tough for him,” RLSP spokesman Fazal Imam Malik said. Curiously, in line with the RLSP’s decision taken a couple of days ago, the party workers came out on the road on Friday to protest the farm Bills passed by Parliament. However, LJP chief Chirag Paswan has been insistent on continuing with the BJP in the NDA, even as he has been critical of Nitish. “It is time to inform people about the dream of the PM to make Bihar a developed state,” Chirag tweeted on Friday.

The Times of India

2020-09-26