Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar inspecting development works during his Samadhan Yatra, at Kaimur on January 29, 2023. Photo Credit: ANI
In August last year, Chief Minister of Bihar Nitish Kumar takes another political U-turn, Stating that he wanted to forge unity among the opposition parties ahead of the 2024 general elections, Shri Kumar joins hands with Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), She also hinted he would pass the mantle To Deputy Chief Minister and RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav. Mr. Kumar’s ideological disloyalty is well known. Later Came to power in Bihar in November 2005The eight-time chief minister has betrayed the Bharatiya Janata Party twice. 2013 And 2022) and RJD once (in 2017, But with all this, he managed to stay in power – a sign of his maneuvering skills and political acumen.
The leaders of the Janata Dal (United) project Mr. Kumar as their candidate for the post of Prime Minister. Though he has denied nurturing such ambitions, recently, while undertaking Samadhan Yatra (Solution Tour) across the state, Mr Kumar said He may tour the country to forge opposition unity After the state budget session but recent events suggest that all is not well for him.
Chief Minister of Telangana K. At the Khammam rally organized by Chandrasekhar Rao, Mr Kumar was conspicuous by his absence. he made his absence stating that they were not aware of the incident, The embarrassment was compounded by the presence of three other Chief Ministers – Arvind Kejriwal, Bhagwant Singh Mann and Pinarayi Vijayan – at the rally. Although Mr. Rao, who has taken the lead in forging unity between the opposition parties, and Mr. Kumar met a while agoIt is not known what transpired between them.
To add to Mr Kumar’s woes, there is a growing disharmony between the JD(U) and the RJD. In the last few months, leaders of both the parties have been targeting each other over one or the other controversial statement. A few months back, Bihar RJD President Jagdanand Singh’s son and RJD MLA Sudhakar Singh… Had to resign from the post of Agriculture Minister After making allegations of corruption in his own department. Since then, Mr Singh has been attacking Mr Kumar on a number of issues, including the recent death in chhapra Mr Singh’s remarks against the Chief Minister for consuming spurious liquor, comparing him to the Mahabharata character Shikhandi, drew sharp criticism from the JD(U) in early January.
The rift between the two parties became more visible at a function in Patna on 23 January to mark the death anniversary of Rajput warrior king Maharana Pratap. Shri Kumar was also present in the programme. JD(U) leader Vijay Kumar Singh demanded an unconditional apology from RJD MLA and Education Minister Chandrashekhar for his controversial statement. comment on Ramcharitmanas, And before the controversy had subsided, another RJD minister, Alok Mehta, remarked that those who used to ring bells in temples were now ruling the state. This was seen as a reference to Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath. JD(U) leaders are worried that such controversial comments are angering a section of people.
There are other concerns as well. In December last year, Mr Kumar announced that Mr Yadav would lead the grand alliance in the 2025 Bihar elections. Political circles in Bihar are abuzz with rumors that the handover is part of a deal between the two parties. Many believe that the handover will happen this year itself. But political analyst Ajay Kumar believes that all this will depend on the outcome of the 2024 elections. “If Prime Minister Narendra Modi comes back to power, Mr Kumar may reconsider his strategy,” he says.
Meanwhile, JDU Parliamentary Board President Upendra Kushwaha has demanded that the Chief Minister call a meeting of the National Executive and tell what kind of agreement he has made with the RJD. He also wants the national executive to discuss whether the JD(U) has weakened in recent times. BJP’s Rajya Sabha MP and former Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi has added to the rumor mongering by saying that JDU may merge with RJD soon, Mr. Kushwaha was quick to react to this, saying, “A merger would be suicidal for the party.”
Mr. Kumar has been able to do nothing but deny the move. The chief minister has apparently mastered the art of survival in politics, but these issues may come in the way of his national ambitions.