Manjhi wins trust vote in Bihar

Indicates cabinet expansion soon

Bihar Chief Minister Jitan Ram Manjhi won the trust vote in the state assembly on Friday, three days after taking over the reins of the state from his predecessor Nitish Kumar. After winning the trust vote, Manjhi has also announced that he intends to expand his cabinet very soon.

The support of the Congress and the RJD ensured smooth passage of the trust motion, moved in by the Chief Minister himself. The motion was passed by voice vote in a special session of the state assembly. A total of 145 legislators voted in favour of the new government, while the BJP staged walkout demanding a fresh mandate after the dismal performance of the ruling Janata Dal (United) in the Lok Sabha elections.The new Chief Minister has again refuted the charges that his government would be "remote controlled" by anyone.

"These charges must be stopped. It's insulting for people of Bihar, especially for those who belong to backward castes. People should not consider me as a rubber stamp for anyone else," Manjhi told, He also added that he intends to expand his cabinet in the coming days. "We are thinking about it. The expansion would take place very soon." While he did not specify how "soon" this expansion would take place, he did say that all the vacant spots in his cabinet would be filed in this expansion.

He also praised his predecessor for choosing him. "Nitish Jee has a deep rooted love for backward communities. He has always worked hard to promote those, who belong to extremely deprived communities. You may recall that he vacated his own chair for Dasrath Manjhi, when he came to see Nitish jee. Today also he chose me to replace him. He chose me because of my experience as a six term legislator and a performing minister. If someone would see this as something else, then backward castes and Mahadalits would never forgive them. Such people would be considered as Manhuwadi."

While he thanked the RJD and Congress legislators for their support, he reiterated that his government has majority in the house. "They might have thought that Mahadalits and backward communities would not support them in the future. We have the numbers on the floor of the house."