The Bharatiya Janata Party’s top leadership in Bihar has advised Janata Dal United chief and Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar to join hands with their party and form government by severing ties with the Rashtriya Janata Dal and the Congress. Both the RJD and the Congress, JDU’s partners in Bihar’s Mahagathbandhan (Grand Alliance) are upset with the CM for supporting demonetisation.
Bihar’s former Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi, while talking to The Sunday Guardian, reminded Kumar that his 17-year-long association with the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) “was the golden period of his career during which he was Railway Minister and CM of Bihar where he enjoyed the trust of the BJP. But in the present Grand Alliance government he is feeling suffocated both inside the House and outside.”
“There is complete trust deficit among Nitish, Lalu and Congress and this ‘no-confidence’ between the Grand Alliance partners is increasing by the day. Nitish is uneasy in the company of Lalu Prasad Yadav. Lalu has no option but to keep Nitish in his fold, for political survival and for the establishment of his two sons. Nitish has the better option of joining hands with the BJP and lead the new government. The RJD and Congress alone cannot form government in Bihar; but BJP and JDU can. If Nitish wants to form an alternative government and breaks the Mahagathbanhdan, he has the BJP as his option,” Modi said.
“The anger of Lalu and Rabri Devi and the Congress against Nitish Kumar for his pro demonetisation statements was clearly visible, when Rabri Devi went to the extent of suggesting that Nitish should get married to Sushil Modi’s sister. This was a manifestation of the extreme hatred against Nitish, who too is feeling uncomfortable in the company of Lalu,” Modi told this newspaper.
According to Sushil Modi, it’s for the first time in the history of the Bihar legislature that not a single question was taken up for answering, as the ruling legislators from the RJD, led by Rabri Devi, entered the well of both the Lower and Upper Houses and did not allow normal businesses to be carried out.
Sushil Modi, who was Deputy Chief Minister to Nitish Kumar for eight years, said that the CM was feeling helpless as RJD members, in his presence, were creating a ruckus in the House and despite being the Leader of the House he could not contain the unruly MLAs of his alliance partner.
According to Modi, the trust deficit between the JDU and RJD legislators became apparent when JDU MLAs did not support the RJD MLAs’ demand for an apology from the BJP members in the House for their anti-Lalu remarks.
When asked whether Nitish Kumar would be readmitted in the NDA, Modi said that the NDA would certainly take a decision when a proposal was moved in that direction. “When there will be a proposal (of JDU returning to the NDA), the NDA leadership will decide. This is not something that can be decided by me. But he was with NDA for 17 years, either as CM or Railway Minister, and that was the golden period for him. He was very comfortable with us, as our way of working and wavelengths matched,” Modi said.
Nitish Kumar and Sushil Modi had campaigned together in the state against Lalu Yadav’s “jungle raj” in the run-up to the 2005 Assembly elections, which the NDA won, paving the way for Nitish Kumar’s appointment as Chief Minister. Like Sushil Modi, Nitish Kumar too shares good relations with Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley. Kumar was the first non BJP CM who had supported the recently passed GST Bill.
Last week, when the Opposition parties called for a nationwide bandh against demonetisation, Nitish Kumar categorically announced that the JDU would not support the bandh, after which West Bengal Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress president Mamata Banerjee, who is spearheading the protest against demonetisation, called those opposing the protest, “gaddar” (traitor) at a rally in Patna.
Just a few months ago, RJD MP from Bhagalpur, Shailesh Kumar, alias Bulo Mandal, who is considered close to the Lalu family, had asked for the installation of party president Lalu Yadav’s younger son and Deputy Chief Minister, Tejashwi Yadav as Chief Minister of Bihar by next year.
Last week, Lalu Yadav summoned Nitish Kumar to his residence to give an assurance to his RJD legislators that the JDU would remain in the Grand Alliance. Lalu Yadav wanted to meet Nitish Kumar following complaints by some RJD legislators that the CM was not attending to their grievances and recommendations.
Recently, Bihar Congress chief and Education Minister of the state, Ashok Choudhary, while commenting on the JDU’s decision to support demonetisation, had said that the Grand Alliance could be disrupted anytime if the Congress high-command took a decision in this regard. “We became a part of the Grand Alliance following the direction of the Congress high command. If the high command decides, then the Grand Alliance would break even today,” Choudhary said.
It is worthwhile to mention that even though the BJP won only 53 seats in last year’s Assembly elections, it got the maximum number of votes—24.4% of the total votes, while JDU got 16.8% and RJD got 18.4%.