Bihar: Despite friction, Grand Alliance sees virtue of unity

Alliance partners stress the importance of staying together to battle BJP surge

Last week, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar called for a national-level “grand alliance” of Opposition parties to stop the surge of the Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP). “A Bihar-like Grand Alliance is the solution,” Kumar told the media at his weekly press conference on April 3. “A mahagathbandhan like this will be a great success. The Congress and Left parties must take the initiative.”

However, given the alleged tussle among partners of the ruling coalition in Bihar, there are doubts over Kumar’s prediction of success for a similar alliance at the national stage. Just days before his statement, a leader belonging to Kumar’s Janata Dal-United (JD-U) blamed ministers from alliance partners Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) and Congress for not utilising funds under 182 developmental schemes. 

Former JD-U spokesman Ajay Alok tweeted that the chief minister had to bear the brunt of it. The JD-U distanced itself from Alok’s statement. Other leaders called it the rant of a disgruntled person shunned by the leadership. However, at a time when the corridors of power in Patna are rife with speculation about problems in the Grand Alliance, Alok’s statement has added fuel to fire.

Alok’s tweets are the most recent in a long list of “skirmishes” between the alliance partners. Last month, Deputy Chief Minister and RJD chief Lalu Prasad’s younger son Tejaswi Yadav asked senior functionaries of his party “whether it has the wherewithal to contest the 2019 poll alone”. RJD leaders claimed the young leader was talking only about strengthening the party’s organisational base ahead of the next general elections. However, there are few takers for this explanation even within the party. Yadav’s question to his party members comes after the first family of the RJD was allegedly not invited to the Bihar Diwas function in Patna on March 22.

Friction between the alliance partners has been visible for sometime now. Last year, Yadav claimed that the three-party coalition won the Bihar Assembly elections on the strength of Prasad’s own vote base and his secular credentials. The JD-U responded by attributing the Grand Alliance victory to Kumar’s track record in maintaining law and order and his secular and pro-development image.
 

The CM openly supported the Centre on demonetisation even as the RJD and the Congress criticised it. State Congress chief and Bihar Education Minister Ashok Chaudhary took to the streets in protest. Prasad held a dharna with West Bengal CM and Trinmool Congress chief Mamata Bannerjee in Patna.

RJD leaders were not amused when Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Kumar praised each other at the Prakash Ustav in January. The bonhomie between the two leaders and Kumar’s reluctance to attack the Centre intensified the buzz that Kumar was warming up to his old ally, BJP. Chorus of a rift became louder when alliance partners decided to contest the Delhi civic polls separately.

However, the partners deny any difference of opinion, blaming the media instead for it. “We are united and there aren’t any differences,” said JD-U spokesman Neeraj Kumar. “There is clarity about the mandate and scope of this alliance. It’s a Bihar-centric alliance and people voted for us based on our track record in law and order and development. Kumar is the face of this alliance — there aren’t two opinions about this. Rumours of a break-up are sponsored by over-imaginative members of the media.”

Prasad also denied any rift and assured the coalition would stay strong even after the 2019 polls. He even visited Kumar on April 3 and the two stalwarts had a 90-minute meeting. Details of the meeting are not known, but political pundits believe it was an exercise in projecting unity among the alliance partners to respective party workers.

The Congress echoed the same sentiment. “We are united in Bihar and there is no question about going our separate ways,” said H K Verma, chief spokesperson of Bihar Pradesh Congress Committee. “Rumours divert attention from real issues such as unemployment and farmer suicides.”

Several political analysts say that despite the bickering and the friction, the Grand Alliance would remain united. “The recent victory of the BJP in UP has proved that all secular parties need to come together, otherwise they would be finished,” a senior RJD leader said. “It’s not the time to quibble over personal issues.” 

“Had there been a Bihar-like Grand Alliance in UP, the result would have been different,” Kumar told the media on April 3. For the first time in months, he directly attacked the BJP for raking up the issue of cow slaughter to “divert” public attention from the failures of the Modi government.

Despite speculation, the opinion in political circles is Kumar won’t switch sides in the near future. “We don’t think he would join hands with the BJP,” a senior Congress leader said. “He would, then, be seen as an opportunist and unreliable ally. Plus, he would not enjoy the comfort level he had during the days of Atal Bihari Vajpayee and L K Advani. He would be treated as a junior partner with no say in governance.”

However, the possibility of a nationwide anti-BJP alliance seems far-fetched. Kumar asked the Congress to take the initiative in forming such an alliance, but himself avoided the issue of leadership. This apart, there is the issue of acceptability. “Kumar might join hands with Prasad, but can Banerjee ally with Left parties,” an RJD leader surmised. “What about the personal enmity between Mulayam Singh Yadav and Mayawati? Is Rahul Gandhi the best prime ministerial candidate and will he accepted by all other regional parties? These are just a few of the problems.”