Nitish set to return as Bihar CM as BJP stumbles

Janata Dal (United) or JD(U) MLAs in Bihar called on Governor Keshri Nath Tripathi on Monday to inform him they had replaced Jitan Ram Manjhi with Nitish Kumar as their leader. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) put its weight behind Manjhi but could not coordinate his “rebellion”.

Along with Kumar, JD(U) chief Sharad Yadav, Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) President Lalu Prasad and Congress legislature party leader Sadanand Singh, and 130 MLAs belonging to their parties, and Indep-endents, marched to the Raj Bhavan and staked claim to form a government under the leadership of Kumar. The leaders gave a list of 130 MLAs and asked the governor to administer the oath of office to Kumar.

Coming out of the Raj Bhavan, Lalu told mediapersons that they urged the governor not to waste time and invite Kumar to take oath as the CM. Lalu and Kumar told the governor he could meet all their 130 MLAs.

“I also asked the governor to take a decision on the issue of formation of a new government and not to allow the political situation to worsen,” Lalu Prasad said.

The governor also met ousted leader of the JD(U) legislature party, Manjhi. In the interim, Manjhi has been expelled from the party on grounds of “anti-party activities”.

Calling Manjhi a “betrayer”, Yadav said he was left with no option but to throw Manjhi out of the party.

“When the history of betrayal is written, Manjhi’s name will be the first on it. He went to the extent of saying the party president and said the latter had no power to call a meeting of the legislature party.

“He made comments that amounted to gross indiscipline against the party president. There was no way left other than to expel him from the party,” said General Secretary K C Tyagi. He said Manjhi is now “neither a leader of the JD(U) legislative party nor a member of the party.” Accusing BJP of trying to create a “constitutional crisis” in Bihar, Tyagi said the JD(U) “requests the governor to hold a trial of strength in the state assembly within 48 hours.”

BJP encouraged Manjhi to rebel against Kumar but without thinking through the consequences of the action.

Manjhi was part of the Kumar government in 2005 and 2010 before taking the mantle from him on May 19 last year, after Kumar had resigned following a crushing defeat to his party in the Lok Sabha polls. The BJP put its weight behind Manjhi and said a majority has to be proved on the floor of the Assembly and not in any party’s office.

“We haven’t taken any decision yet but we are sure Manjhi who is the chief minister, according to his statements, is very confident and Kumar’s pavilion looks very disappointed,” BJP spokesperson Shahnawaz Hussain said.

In the 243-member Assembly, JD(U) has 111 MLAs, BJP 87, RJD 24, Congress 5 besides 5 Independents, while 10 seats are vacant. With the present effective strength of the assembly at 233, the magic figure is 117.