Bihar Politics: There was a sudden political earthquake in Maharashtra on Sunday afternoon. Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Ajit Pawar suddenly called a meeting of the legislators. After the meeting was over, he reached Raj Bhavan and then took oath as Deputy CM. Along with him, 8 other MLAs of the party also took the oath of office. Ajit’s move definitely seems to be weakening the efforts of his uncle Sharad Pawar in which he is engaged in connecting the opposition for the 2024 general elections.
After the sudden happening in the politics of Maharashtra on Sunday, speculations started that whether a political crisis like Maharashtra is going to come in Bihar too, or it can happen anytime. Are Janata Dal United (JDU) and Chief Minister Nitish Kumar preparing to return to the National Democratic Alliance (NDA)?
Actually, if we look at the events of the last three-four days in Bihar, many such incidents have happened politically which are telling that there is some ‘crisis’. Since then there is speculation that Nitish Kumar may once again return to the NDA. What is the reason for such speculation? Let’s try to understand it.
Amit Shah softens stand on Nitish Kumar
Union Home Minister Amit Shah has visited Bihar 5 times in the last 10 months, ever since Nitish Kumar parted ways with the BJP (JDU broke away from the BJP in August last year and joined hands with the Grand Alliance). Every time Amit Shah criticized Nitish Kumar while addressing the public meeting and said that the doors of BJP are permanently closed for Nitish Babu.
Interestingly, on June 29, when Amit Shah visited Lakhisarai in Bihar and addressed a public meeting, he did not make a single comment regarding Nitish Kumar or even repeat his earlier remark that the BJP The doors are closed for Nitish Babu.
In contrast, Amit Shah attempted to rouse Nitish Kumar’s conscience by exposing corruption and questioning his alliance with individuals facing charges of scams worth over Rs 20 lakh crore.
Speculation started after Amit Shah’s soft stance
After Amit Shah’s soft stand, speculation is rife in Bihar’s political circles that the BJP may once again use corruption as a focal point to woo Nitish Kumar in its fold. This is because in 2017, BJP leveled corruption charges against Tejashwi Yadav, after which Nitish Kumar listened to his conscience and broke ties with RJD and formed an alliance with BJP.
The names of RJD supremo Lalu Prasad Yadav and his family members have cropped up in the job-for-land scam and the IRCTC scam and in both the cases, the investigating agencies have acted swiftly. There is also speculation that if Tejashwi Yadav is arrested in the coming days, it may become a compulsion for Nitish Kumar to walk away from the Grand Alliance. Please tell that Tejashwi Yadav has appeared before the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in the land-for-job scam.
Nitish Kumar did one-to-one meeting
Nitish Kumar’s one-on-one meeting with his party’s MLAs has also grabbed everyone’s attention, keeping suspense on his next move. Please tell that when Amit Shah visited Lakhisarai, Nitish Kumar started holding one-to-one meetings with all his MLAs two days before Shah’s visit. During these meetings, Nitish Kumar inquired from his MLAs about the issues and challenges faced by their respective constituencies and also urged them to share the problems faced by them.
According to sources, Nitish Kumar is also stressing on the need for unity among his MLAs and assuring them that he is with them and will continue to support them. Personal meetings with his MLAs have also led to speculation that Nitish Kumar apparently fears a split within his party. If sources are to be believed, he is trying to gauge the sentiments of his MLAs and is urging them to remain united.
There is also speculation that Nitish Kumar is considering a change in his political approach in the near future, which is why he is urging his MLAs to remain united.
RJD not satisfied after Patna meeting
Deputy Chief Minister Tejashwi Yadav has been on a foreign tour since the meeting of opposition parties on June 23 and has not returned yet. Speculation is also going on in the political corridors regarding this matter. During the June 23 meeting, the unanimous decision by all opposition parties to project Rahul Gandhi as the prime ministerial candidate left Lalu Prasad and Tejashwi Yadav dissatisfied.
Nitish Kumar is under constant pressure from the RJD to become the opposition’s prime ministerial candidate and hand over power in Bihar to Tejashwi Yadav. However, Lalu and Tejashwi looked unhappy after the meeting of opposition parties in Patna where it was unanimously agreed to work under the leadership of Rahul Gandhi.
This obviously angers the RJD because if Nitish Kumar is not projected as the prime ministerial candidate, he will continue to be the CM. This means Tejashwi Yadav will have to swallow the bitter pill and continue as Deputy CM.
What is the reaction of BJP?
After the big political drama in Maharashtra, former Deputy Chief Minister of Bihar and BJP MP Sushil Modi tweeted and claimed that a similar situation could happen in Bihar as well. Sushil Modi claimed that soon there may be a split in JDU as well and fearing this split, Nitish Kumar is holding separate discussions with his MLAs. He also said that JDU MLAs and MPs will neither accept Rahul Gandhi nor Tejashwi Yadav, which could lead to a major rebellion within the party.
Sushil Modi claims that several JDU MPs are at risk of losing their ticket in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections after the tie-up between RJD and JDU, which could lead to a major rebellion within the party.
