Bihar: CM Nitish Kumar rings Gandhi as BJP-JD(U) rift widens
Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar has called for a meeting of Members of Parliament (MPs) and Members of Legislative Assemblies (MLAs) of Janata Dal (United) on Tuesday. The development comes two days after the bitter resignation of former union minister and senior JD(U) leader RCP Singh. The meeting signals Kumar's rising frustration with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), thereby, increasing speculations of a rift.
Why does this story matter?
Alliance partners in Bihar JD(U) and the BJP have been at loggerheads in the recent past, mainly due to Kumar's demand for conducting a caste census in Bihar (and across India). Singh's resignation comes a year after he was chosen as a union minister allegedly without consulting the Bihar CM, who was rumored to be unhappy about the former's growing proximity with BJP.
JD(U) calls for meeting with legislators
Political circles in Bihar have come abuzz after a senior JD(U) official said that the Bihar CM would hold a meeting of MPs and MLAs on Tuesday. Party MPs attending the ongoing parliament session have also been asked to reach Patna for the meeting. According to reports, the CM also spoke to Indian National Congress (INC) President Sonia Gandhi over telephone.
Trouble in paradise for 5-year-old alliance?
Citing ill health, the CM also stayed away from a NITI Aayog meeting in Delhi on Sunday. The meeting was attended by 23 Chief Ministers, including West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. However, Kumar was seen at two back-to-back public events in Patna on Sunday. Additionally, the CM said on Sunday that JD(U) will not have any representatives in the union cabinet, PTI reported.
'Attempt to replicate Chirag Paswan model'
Speaking a day after Singh resigned from JD(U) over corruption allegations, Rajiv Ranjan, the President, said, "This is a conspiracy against Nitish Kumar...A model appeared in 2020 polls in the name of Chirag Paswan, another is being made at present." Ranjan referred to the split in Paswan's Lok Janshakti Party after his uncle left in 2020.
'JD(U) will not join central cabinet'
Why is Nitish Kumar upset with the BJP?
The call for a meeting has given rise to speculations of JD(U) and BJP's alliance coming to an end. One of the biggest reasons for Kumar's disappointment seems to be NDA's token representation of alliance partners in the union cabinet. The CM has also expressed his disappointment with Bihar assembly speaker Vijay Kumar Sinha and hopes for the BJP to concede to his demand.
RCP Singh resigns from JD(U)
JD(U) denied a Rajya Sabha nomination to Singh last month, a year after he joined the union cabinet reportedly without consulting Kumar. Singh's close proximity to BJP, alongside a video of him chanting slogans that presented him as the next CM, led to the party sending a show-cause notice to the senior leader this week. The notice sought an explanation for property irregularities.
Singh slams Kumar after quitting party
"Nitish Kumar is a man of vendetta," the former JD(U) national president said a day after resigning from the party. Singh also said that JD (U) is a sinking ship and there is no cure for CM's 'jealousy.' Snubbing the party boss in an interview with NDTV, Singh said that Nitish Kumar "stopped low to target his daughters."
