Page 28 - Nitish Kumar

UP IAS association appeals Bihar govt to reconsider Anand Mohan's release

"We strongly appeal to the state government of Bihar to reconsider its decision at the earliest in the interest of the nation," said the association in a statement released on Twitter

Meeting of opposition leaders in Patna post-Karnataka poll: Nitish Kumar

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Saturday hinted that a meeting of opposition leaders may take place in Patna after the crucial Karnataka assembly polls were over as many would be busy electioneering there. The JD (U) supremo said issues related to forging opposition unity could be expected to be thrahed outat this meeting. "We will definitely sit together and discuss the issue pertaining to the formation of an alliance of opposition parties to take on the BJP in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. "Currently, some leaders are busy in the assembly poll (Karnataka). Once it is over, we will finalize the venue of our meeting. If Patna is unanimously decided as the next venue of the meeting of opposition leaders, it will be held here ," Kumar said. "We will be happy to organize this meeting in Patna," he added. It may be recalled that West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, after meeting Nitish Kumar and his deputy Tejashwi Yadav, in Kolkata on April 24, had requested her ...

Nitish defends Kejriwal over alleged spending of Rs 45 cr on renovations

"Criticism started the day a person won elections in Delhi and gradually made inroads into other states," Nitish said

Conducting caste-based survey no crime, says Bihar CM to opposers

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Friday reacted with exasperation over the opposition faced by the head count of caste' underway in the state, saying that holding such a survey is not a crime. He asserted that the state is not conducting a caste census but only collecting information related to people's economic status and their caste so that specific steps could be taken by the government to serve them better. The ongoing caste survey is a good initiative taken by us. People will be hugely benefited after the recognition of their economic status, whether they belong to the upper caste, backward caste or extremely weaker sections of the society. I don't understand why a section of people are against this exercise They are challenging it. Is it a crime? No, it is not, Kumar said while addressing a conference of Civil Servants here. An organisation had claimed that it was not a survey for a sample population but a census involving house-to-house enumeration of all people, which o

Why has Anand Mohan become a headache for the Nitish Kumar administration

Several people and bodies, including the wife of slain IAS officer G Krishnaiah and the Central IAS Association, have expressed their dismay over the decision of Mohan's release

Bihar CM Nitish Kumar meets Akhilesh, Mamata to forge opposition unity

Ramping up efforts to forge Opposition unity, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Monday met Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav and said work is on to bring together as many parties as possible to remove the BJP from power in the next general elections. No welfare work is being done by the present dispensation which is only relying on publicity, the JD(U) leader said attacking the BJP after meeting Yadav at the SP office here, hours after he held talks with his West Bengal counterpart and Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee in Kolkata. "I am not looking for any position for myself. My endeavour is to work for country's good," Kumar, who was accompanied by RJD leader and Bihar's Deputy Chief Minister Tejaswi Yadav, told reporters. He alleged that efforts are being made to change the history of the country. Akhilesh Yadav raised the issue of price rise and said there was a need to remove the BJP government without any delay. The Bihar chief minister had come to Lucknow a

Nitish-Mamata meeting: 'Opposition parties need to strategise together'

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar met West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee in Kolkata on Monday as they sought to cobble up a coalition of opposition parties, with the two regional satraps stressing on the need to "prepare together" for the next Lok Sabha polls in 2024. The meeting between the two leaders, which was also attended by Bihar's deputy chief minister Tejashwi Yadav, was described as "positive". "It was a very positive discussion... Opposition parties need to sit together and strategise," said Kumar after the meeting in state secretariat Nabanna. Banerjee came out of the meeting, stating, "We have to give the message that we are all together." While details of the discussion were scanty with the leaders preferring to speak on the broader consensus, sources said the two sides used the meeting to figure out how they would proceed in sewing together a coalition that would be workable ahead of the elections. "Nothing is being done for India's development, those ruling are only ..

Congress' Rawat admits to holding political discussions with Nitish Kumar

Senior Congress leader Harish Rawat on Thursday said he held a political discussion with Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar in Patna but declined to comment on whether he was sent on a special mission by the party high command. Sharing a photograph of his Wednesday evening meeting with Kumar on Twitter, Rawat wrote, "Shri Nitish Kumar, the strong voice of opposition unity in 2024..." However, when asked about the meeting, Rawat said Kumar is an old friend and he had travelled to Patna to appreciate his good works. "He is our old friend. He is doing good work and it is everyone's responsibility to salute good work," he said. Rawat, a former Uttarakhand chief minister, admitted that there were political discussions between the two leaders. "We are no saints. When political people meet, political talk is bound to happen," he added. However, when asked if the party high command had sent him to Patna on a special mission, Rawat refused to comment. The two leaders' meeting is being see

Hooch tragedy: Nitish makes U-turn, announces ex-gratia for victims' kin

Making a U-turn on paying compensation to the victims of hooch tragedies in dry Bihar, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Monday announced conditional payment of an ex gratia of Rs 4 lakh each to the next of kin of those who died after drinking spurious liquor. The death toll at Motihari in East Champaran district rose to 26 on Monday, with four more people losing their lives after consuming the illicit liquor, police said. We have decided to provide ex gratia of Rs 4 lakh each to the next of kin of the deceased. But, the amount will only be given if their family members say in writing to the district magistrate concerned that the death took place after consuming illicit liquor. They will have to disclose the source from where the alcohol was procured, too, Kumar told reporters. This is a reversal of his earlier stand that the family members of those who died after drinking hooch would be paid no compensation by his government. After 26 people died in a hooch tragedy in December 2022,

Caste census will be beneficial for all sections of society: CM Nitish

Supporting the Congress' demand for an up-to-date caste census in the country, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Monday said it would be beneficial for all sections of the society. The survey report would help the government in better implementation of welfare schemes for the socially and economically disadvantaged groups, the chief minister said. We have been in favour of the caste census right from the very beginning. When the central government refused to do so, we decided to conduct the caste survey on our own. It is going on in the state. The exercise will provide data to the government for carrying out works for the benefit of weaker sections of the society, Kumar told reporters here. The month-long second phase of caste headcount is underway in Bihar from April 15 to May 15. The enumeration exercise, which started from January 7, will be completed by May. The Congress is the alliance partner of the Mahagathbandhan' (grand alliance) government in Bihar. Congress presiden

Bihar hooch tragedy: Nitish announces aid of Rs 4 lakh each to next of kin

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Monday said he is deeply pained over the deaths in the suspected hooch tragedy at Motihari in East Champaran district, and announced an ex gratia of Rs 4 lakh each to the next of kin of the deceased. The death toll rose to 26 on Monday, with four more people losing their lives after consuming the spurious liquor, police said. I am deeply pained at what happened in Motihari I know that the majority of people who die in such incidents belong to the economically weaker sections Despite our best attempts, hooch incidents are taking place in the state and people are dying after consuming spurious liquor, Kumar told reporters. We have decided to provide ex gratia of Rs 4 lakh each to the next of kin of the deceased. But, the amount will only be given if their family members give in writing to the district magistrate concerned that the death took place after consuming illicit liquor. They will have to disclose the source from where the alcohol was ...

Toll rises to 22 in hooch tragedy, BJP accuses Nitish govt of 'mass murder'

As the death toll in a suspected hooch tragedy in Bihar's East Champaran district rose to 22 on Sunday, the opposition BJP alleged that the incident was a "mass murder by the Nitish Kumar government". Leader of Opposition in the Bihar assembly, Vijay Kumar Sinha, accused the state administration of "protecting liquor mafias who are associated with the ruling JD(U) and the RJD". The party will approach the National Human Rights Commission and other such central bodies to conduct a "probe into the hooch tragedy", former state BJP chief Sanjay Jaiswal said. Twenty-two people in Turkauliya, Harsiddhi, Sugauli and Paharpur villages of Motihari have so far died after allegedly consuming illicit liquor, the East Champaran district police said in a statement. At least twenty-nine others are battling for their lives at Sadar and different hospitals in the district. Condition of four patients is reported to be critical," it said. A team of BJP leaders visited some of the villages in the ...

Nitish Kumar reprises role played by George Fernandes in formation of NDA

After the successful meeting with opposition leaders in Delhi, Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar is turning out to be the biggest challenge for Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the 2024 elections

6 dead after consuming spurious liquor, CM Nitish calls it sad incident

Reacting to the hooch tragedy in Motihari, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Saturday said that it's a sad incident and asked for all information related to it

Nitish Kumar backs Kejriwal over CBI summon, says people respect him

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar termed the CBI summon to his Delhi counterpart Arvind Kejriwal for questioning in connection with the Delhi excise policy case as 'wrong'

A big test for Opposition unity

Nitish Kumar's efforts in Bihar were hindered by the lack of a grand vision for state-building, but now with the Congress' blessings, he has the opportunity to create something new

Those who will vote for BJP in 2024 LS polls will bring destruction: Nitish

Launching a veiled attack on the BJP-led NDA, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Friday said those who will vote for them in the next year's Lok Sabha elections will bring destruction on themselves. Kumar, who dumped the BJP in August last year and formed the Mahagathbandhan government, claimed that he has been working to forge opposition unity. I am working towards forging opposition unity...but I am not a claimant for the prime minister's post. All opposition parties are united over forming an alliance against the BJP-led government at the Centre before the 2024 general elections," the JD(U) supremo said. He was addressing party workers at a JD(U) office here on the occasion of the birth anniversary of Bhim Rao Ambedkar, the architect of India's Constitution. "I must tell one thing that those who will vote for them (BJP) in the coming general elections will bring destruction on themselves and the country and those who will vote for us will ensure the well-being of themselves, t

As Nitish tries to bring Opposition together, here's a look at his journey

The Bihar CM met with Congress leadership on Wednesday and indicated he would work towards bringing the Opposition together ahead of the 2024 General Elections

Opposition leaders united on forming pre-poll alliance, talks on: Nitish

Asserting that leaders of most opposition parties are united on forging a pre-poll alliance against the BJP-led NDA before the 2024 general elections, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Thursday said "talks are on". He told newspersons after arriving at Patna's Jayaprakash Narayan International (JPNI) Airport, that he had held talks with several opposition leaders on the issue during his recent Delhi visit. I met several opposition leaders during my stay in Delhi Sab log ek paksh mein hin bol rahein hain (All are speaking in one voice), he said. "We are working to forge an alliance against the BJP-led NDA before the 2024 general elections. Talks are on with other non-BJP leadersit will continue in future too, Kumar elaborated. He added that most leaders had conveyed to him that they were willing to join hands to fight BJP unitedly. This is not the first time I met non-BJP leaders in Delhi. Talks with other non-BJP leaders are onThey (leaders of opposition parties) have also ...

BJP spokesperson takes a dig at Kejriwal, calls him 'Natwarlal of politics'

The BJP on Thursday called Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal the "Natwarlal of Indian politics" and said he has given the biggest example of "political conversion" by deciding to ally with the coalition of corrupts. Addressing a press conference, BJP national spokesperson Shehzad Poonawala said he can understand the "political helplessness" of Bihar Chief Nitish Kumar to forge an alliance with the Congress and the RJD, but he failed to understand why Kejriwal, a "political pinocchio", decided to make a U-turn on corruption. On Wednesday, Kejriwal met Kumar and RJD's Tejashwi Yadav at his residence in New Delhi. The meeting came hours after the Bihar leaders met Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and Rahul Gandhi as part of Kumar's initiative to forge an alliance of opposition parties ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha polls. "We understand Nitish ji's political helplessness. But what is the political compulsion and helplessness of Arvind Kejriwal, who was born to fight against ...