INDIA.Bihar: “I’ve resigned,” said Nitish Kumar today evening, hours after his party signed off on his decision to end his alliance with the BJP in Bihar.
He met with the governor late this afternoon to hand in his resignation. “I have resigned and informed my MLA about it,” he told the media after meeting the governor. After submitting resignation from CM’s post, Nitish Kumar also submitted a letter of support of 160 MLAs.
The Governor will meet Leader of Opposition Tejashwi Yadav along with Kumar to seek a fresh term as Chief Minister. Other parties like the Congress are also expected to join the new alliance.
Samajwadi Party Chief Akhilesh Yadav reacted to the split saying, “It’s a good start. On this day the slogan of ‘Angrezo Bharat Chhodo’ was given and today the slogan of ‘BJP Bhagaon’ is coming from Bihar. I think soon political parties and people in different states will stand against BJP”
Frequent statements by state BJP leaders targeting departments overseen by the chief minister or JD(U) leaders did not go down well with Nitish Kumar, a JD(U) leader familiar with the matter said on condition of anonymity.
BJP’s bad control over its state leaders might have led to this situation as there were brash comments coming from BJP leadership in Bihar about the government.
“Despite repeated requests, the central BJP leadership has not been able to tame its state leaders, who have been openly speaking against the state government. To us, it appears this is deliberate,” said A senior JDU leader.
Tensions between the two parties have reached a tipping point due to Nitish Kumar’s fears that Union Minister Amit Shah is working on splitting the Janata Dal (United).
RCP Singh’s support to Amit Shah added fuel to the fire. RCP Singh quit the JDU over the weekend after his party accused him of deep corruption.
In 2017, RCP Singh joined the Union Cabinet as Nitish Kumar’s party representative. The Bihar Chief Minister was upset that he was offered only one seat in the government.
Sources also said that all 16 BJP ministers will submit their resignation letters to the Governor. The BJP ministers have gathered at the official residence of Deputy Chief Minister Tarkishore Prasad from where they will proceed to the Raj Bhawan. The BJP will also hold a press meet at 1:30 pm. in Patna to publish its future strategy.
Yesterday, his closest aide said that RCP Singh had decided to join the Center on his own accord and informed Nitish Kumar that Amit Shah had said that he alone was acceptable as the JDU representative in the cabinet.
“Will Amit Shah decide the affairs of our party?” said Rajeev Rankajan Singh alias Lalan Singh who is the president of JDU.
The Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), which is the largest party in Bihar, also had a meeting today to discuss the crisis in Bihar.The party is headed by Tejashwi Yadav right now. The party is expected to align with Nitish Kumar, reviving its earlier alliance.
Mahboob Alam, CPI (ML) MLA, said, “We have also given a list to Tejashwi Yadav. We will pull the BJP out of power. We are extending support to Nitish Kumar to form the new government.” Sources said Tejashwi Yadav has demanded the Home Ministry portfolio and the post of Speaker.
On the other hand, the Congress and Left parties today handed over the lists of their legislators to Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader Tejashwi Yadav. Mandan Mohan Singh, Congress state president, said, “We will support Nitish Kumar if he quits the BJP and forms a new government with the help of the Mahagathbandhan. We have also handed over the list of all 19 MLAs of our party to RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav.”
However BJP’s Kaushal Kishore said,“Don’t want to comment on Bihar’s political situation, the but BJP never initiated anything that may stir up a controversy or create a situation of uncertainty among them. The JD(U) will make a decision but the BJP definitely wants Nitish Kumar to continue as the CM,” as quoted by ANI.
“The BJP would want that the government of JD(U), BJP and other parties, under the Chief Ministership of Nitish Kumar, continue to work strongly and this is in the interest of Bihar as well as the nation,” he added.
Nitish Kumar is said to be convinced that Amit Shah wants to replicate the Maharashtra model in Bihar.
Also Read: Chirag Paswan Warns Nitish Kumar To Fear a Defeat in 2024 Polls, Calls Him a ‘Part Of Chirag Model’
