Bihar floor test LIVE updates: Catch all the latest updates on JD(U)'s floor test here
JD(U) chief and Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar expressed confidence that he would win the trust vote in state Assembly today
Senior BJP leader Sushil Kumar Modi has demanded an inquiry into the allegations of recently disqualified RJD MLC Rambali Singh that Tejashwi Yadav has been "consuming liquor" in violation of the state's stringent prohibition law. However, Singh, who lost his Bihar legislative council membership two days ago on the charge of working against the party line, maintained that the senior BJP leader (Sushil Modi) had taken out of context word uttered by him during a "loose talk" which got recorded on camera without his knowledge. Singh claimed that he never took the name of RJD leader and former Deputy Chief Minister Tejashwi Yadav during the conversation. "I never took the name of Tejashwi Yadav It was a loose talk which got recorded on camera without my knowledge. Somebody asked me during conversation whether Tejashwi Yadav consumes liquor or not.On this, I said the prohibition law is a complete failure in the state and those who were consuming liquor earlier, are consuming even after t
The nomination process for biennial elections to the Rajya Sabha went underway in Bihar on Thursday with the Election Commission's notification for six seats, terms of which would end early next month. Out of the half-a-dozen seats, for which filing of nomination papers will come to a close on February 15, three each are held by the state's ruling NDA and the Mahagathbandhan', which has been pushed back to the opposition camp as a result of the latest volte-face by Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, the JD(U) president. The MPs whose current term is nearing expiry are Vashishth Narayan Singh and Aneel Hegde (JDU), Sushil Kumar Modi (BJP), Manoj Kumar Jha and Ashfaq Karim (RJD) and state Congress president Akhilesh Prasad Singh. Voting for the Rajya Sabha seats is scheduled for February 27. As per the established practice, while voting will take place from 9 am to 4 pm, the counting will be held on the same day from 5 pm onwards. Given the current composition of the 243-strong assembly, t
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The strength of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) that it leads, currently at 114, is also set to improve with the return of the Janata Dal (United) to its fold
Senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor on Sunday took a swipe at JD(U) leader Nitish Kumar over his latest volte-face in Bihar, posting what he said was the word of the day snollygoster, which means a shrewd and unprincipled politician. Kumar on Sunday resigned as the Chief Minister of Bihar, saying "things were not working well" for him in the Mahagathbandhan or the grand alliance and the opposition bloc INDIA, and staked claim to form a new government with the BJP, which he had dumped less than 18 months ago. Tharoor shared his social media post from 2017 when Kumar had broken away from the Mahagathbandhan in Bihar with the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) and the Congress and returned to the BJP despite being foes for a long time. "Word of the day! Definition of snollygoster US dialect: a shrewd, unprincipled politician. First Known Use: 1845. Most recent use: 26/7/17," Tharoor had tweeted in 2017. Tagging that post, the former Union minister said on Sunday in a post of X, " Didn't ...
JD(U) President and Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar said 'only Hindi should be spoken' and the party tolerated it for the sake of cordiality in INDIA alliance, DMK leader T R Baalu said here on Sunday. Speaking to reporters after holding seat sharing talks with Congress leaders here, Baalu, when asked on exit of Nitish Kumar from INDIA alliance said it appeared that right from the beginning he had 'some issues' and there would not be any electoral 'damage' due to his move. To a question about the 'Bihar Chief Minister's statement that nothing worked as per his plan in the INDIA bloc,' Baalu asked: "What did he plan? He did not spell out any plan, he said only Hindi should be spoken and only that (message) remains." Elaborating, Baalu, a Lok Sabha member said: "He (Nitish Kumar) said everyone should talk in Hindi. We tolerated it. Even then, we kept quiet, as a compromise, for the sake of cordiality in the alliance. It was said that English must not be spoken. This is an ordinary .
JD(U) president Nitish Kumar, who took oath as Chief Minister of Bihar for a record ninth time on Sunday after a dramatic volte-face, asserted that there is now no question of him going anywhere else, leaving the NDA-fold. Kumar was sworn in by Bihar Governor Rajendra Arlekar at Raj Bhavan here, hours after he resigned from the post, saying "things were not working well" for him in the Grand Alliance and the opposition bloc INDIA. "I was with them (NDA) earlier, too. We went on different paths, but now we are together and will remain so... I came back to where I was (NDA), and now there is no question of going anywhere else, the 72-year-old leader told reporters after taking oath as the CM. He said a total of eight people took oath on Sunday as ministers, and names of the remaining ones will be decided soon. BJP leaders - Samrat Choudhary and former Speaker Vijay Kumar Sinha - will be the deputy chief ministers, Kumar said. Kumar also said he was committed to the development of Bi
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Sunday congratulated Nitish Kumar for taking oath as the Chief Minister of Bihar. In a post on 'X', Adityanath said, "Hearty congratulations to Shri @NitishKumar ji on taking oath as as the Chief Minister of Bihar and Shri Samrat Chaudhary ji and Shri Vijay Sinha ji on taking oath as Deputy Chief Ministers! Fully confident that the double engine government formed in Bihar will set excellent standards of service, good governance and development in the state under the guidance of respected Prime Minister Shri @narendramodi ji." JD(U) president Kumar on Sunday took oath as Chief Minister of Bihar for the record ninth time after a dramatic volte-face, ditching the Mahagathbandhan (Grand Alliance) and the opposition bloc INDIA and forming a new government with the BJP, which he had dumped less than 18 months ago. Kumar was sworn in by Governor Rajendra Arlekar at the Raj Bhavan in Patna in the presence of senior leaders, including BJP ...
Prime Minister Narendra Modi asserted on Sunday that the newly sworn-in NDA government in Bihar will leave no stone unturned for the state's development and to fulfil people's aspirations, as he congratulated Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and his two deputies on taking oath. In a post on X, Modi said he is confident that the new government in Bihar will serve the people with full dedication. Hours after resigning as chief minister and breaking ties with the INDIA bloc, Kumar took oath of the same office for the ninth time as the BJP extended its support to him. BJP leaders Samrat Choudhary and Vijay Kumar Sinha took oath as deputy chief ministers, along with several ministers.
RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav, whose party on Sunday lost power following Nitish Kumar's latest volte-face, claimed that the latter's JD(U) will be "finished in the upcoming Lok Sabha polls". The former deputy chief minister described his ex-boss as a "respectable" but "tired" leader and warned the BJP, which has teamed up with the JD(U) chief, that the septuagenarian did not like to share "credit" with allies. "Nitish Kumar seems to have a problem with me getting the credit for many achievements of our government. It should ring alarm bells for the BJP," remarked Yadav. "Nitishji is a respectable leader. He used to mock me when I was in the opposition for promising 10 lakh jobs during the 2020 state elections. I made him work in that direction", said the young leader. He added, "whatever may be the excuses Nitish ji makes for switching sides, his JD(U) is all set to be finished (khatam hone wala hai) in Lok Sabha polls". Yadav, who is RJD supremo Lalu Prasad's younger son, became the
The Congress on Sunday called Bihar Chief Minister and JD(U) president Nitish Kumar a "chameleon" and said the people of the state will never forgive this "expert" of betrayal and those making him dance to their tunes. The party was reacting to Kumar's decision to resign as the chief minister of Bihar and leaving the 'Mahagathbandhan (grand alliance)' in the state while also dealing a body blow to the opposition bloc INDIA. Kumar had joined the 'Mahagathbandhan' in August 2022, when he had snapped ties with the BJP, accusing it of trying to "split" his Janata Dal (United). He had formed a new government with a multi-party coalition that included the RJD, the Congress and three Left parties. Dubbing him as "Aaya Ram, Gaya Ram", the Congress said there are many people like him in the country. The expression was used widely in politics in the 90s referring to the frequent floor-crossing and switching of parties. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge said they already knew about Kumar'
Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's exit from the Mahagathbandhan alliance and consequently the INDIA bloc to align with the BJP is a "loss" for the Saffron party and a "gain" for the opposition alliance, Tamil Nadu's ruling DMK said on Sunday. Reacting to Janata Dal (United) President and Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's move, which is being seen as a body blow to the INDIA alliance, DMK spokesperson J Constandine Ravindran said, "People will never accept this act of betrayal." Ravindran told PTI: "Though Kumar is a veteran leader in Bihar, he has completely lost credibility. He has no integrity. Integrity and credibility are very important for a leader." Furthermore, he said: "Nitish Kumar leaving the INDIA bloc is a gain for us (opposition alliance) and it is a loss for the BJP. People will teach a lesson to Nitish Kumar at the right time." The JD(U) chief is shifting loyalties for the fifth time, Ravindran said, adding that Kumar had joined the Mahagathbandhan in Bihar only in ...
BJP leaders arriving at the party office said that discussion will be held to chalk out the strategy for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections
Notably, the Bhartiya Janata Party will also hold a meeting with its MLAs and MPs in Patna at 9 am today to chalk out the strategy over the latest political situation in the state
Amid speculations of a rift in the ruling Mahagathbandhan in Bihar, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Friday attended the high tea ceremony held at the Raj Bhavan here on the occasion of the Republic Day with his deputy Tejashwi Yadav of the RJD remaining conspicuous by absence. The seat next to that of Kumar was occupied by senior JD(U) leader and minister Ashok Kumar Choudhary who removed the slip said to be bearing the name of Yadav before occupying the chair. Leader of the opposition in the assembly, Vijay Kumar Sinha of the BJP, sat next to Choudhary and he was seen exchanging pleasantries with Kumar. The high tea was organised on the occasion of the Republic Day. Though education minister Alok Kumar Mehta, who is also a national general secretary of the RJD, was among the attendees, Yadav and many other party leaders, including Speaker Awadh Bihari Chaudhary, did not turn up. Speculations are rife that Kumar was unhappy with the Mahagathbandhan, which includes the Congress and
The trouble was out in the open when Kumar attended the high tea ceremony held at the Raj Bhavan here on the occasion of the Republic Day but his deputy Tejashwi Yadav of the RJD skipped the function
Senior BJP leaders held consultations among themselves and with allies on Friday amid signs that the party is open to joining hands with Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar yet again as his ties with INDIA bloc partners nosedive. Former Bihar deputy chief minister and Rajya Sabha member Sushil Kumar Modi, who has been among the state leaders consulted by the BJP top brass, told reporters that doors are never closed permanently for anyone in politics. They open and close as per the necessity, he said, when asked about the party's earlier stand that its doors were closed for Kumar forever after he snapped ties with the BJP in August 2022. Modi said, "As far as Kumar or the JD(U) are concerned, doors are never permanently closed in politics. Closed doors open when the time comes but whether they will open or not is for our central leadership to decide." However, BJP sources declined to comment on whether a decision has been taken to join hands with the JD(U). Home Minister Amit Shah an
Hindustani Awam Morcha (HAM) leader Jitan Ram Manjhi said on Friday it was only a matter of time before JD(U) chief Nitish Kumar returns to the BJP-led NDA. Asked about the timing of Kumar joining hands with the NDA, Manjhi said, "It will happen at any moment. I knew from the beginning that the grand alliance government of the RJD-JD(U) would fall." On the reason for Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Tejashwi Yadav skipping the governor's high-tea ceremony on Republic Day, Manjhi said, "I cannot comment on this. You should ask him (Tejashwi Yadav) why he was absent." Earlier in the day, Manjhi had said that the 'grand alliance' government in Bihar would not remain intact. "There is not much to say about the political atmosphere in Bihar. Nitish Kumar's statement on dynastic politics was directed at the Congress and Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD). The 'grand alliance' government in Bihar will not remain intact after this statement from the CM. Kumar had also mentioned that some people wanted