Nitish Kumar was unanimously re-elected as President of Bihar’s ruling Janata Dal (United) at a gathering of the celebration’s nationwide government in Delhi on Friday afternoon. The Bihar Chief Minister was re-appointed minutes after aide Lalan Singh stepped down, ending weeks of frenzied hypothesis.
Speaking to reporters instantly after the assembly, Mr Singh shot down speak of a rift within the celebration, and stated, “Anger? What anger? Why should I be angry? This is the first time I am hearing this word.”
Sources stated Lalan Singh was eliminated as a result of he was seen as being slightly too near the JDU’s alliance companion in Bihar – Lalu Yadav’s Rashtriya Janata Dal – amid speak that RJD chief Tejashwi Yadav, who’s Lalu Yadav’s son and the Deputy Chief Minister, is being prepped to take over.
There was additionally some consternation within the JDU after BJP chief and Union Minister Giriraj Singh’s declare that Lalu Yadav had advised him “… the JDU will merge with RJD soon”.
That buzz was dismissed by Tejashwi Yadav himself, who accused the opposition BJP of “planting stories” to destabilise the JDU-RJD alliance within the state. Mr Yadav’s response got here after the BJP’s Sushil Modi – who was the Deputy Chief Minister until Nitish Kumar stop that alliance – claimed the JDU was spreading rumours about re-allying with the BJP to maintain the RJD and Congress in examine.
Officially, although, Lalan Singh advised Nitish Kumar he wished extra time to concentrate on his constituency forward of subsequent 12 months’s election. Mr Singh is a two-time Lok Sabha MP from Bihar’s Munger. Bihar Minister Vijay Kumar Choudhary stated, “Lalan Singh said he will be busy with elections… so wants to hand over post of party President to Chief Minister… and Nitish Kumar has accepted it.”
The change within the JDU’s high management additionally comes months earlier than the 2024 Lok Sabha election and hypothesis over Nitish Kumar’s prime ministerial ambitions in that race. The JDU boss was apparently handed over as a possible PM candidate for the INDIA opposition bloc earlier this month.
Nitish Kumar and the JDU performed rubbished rumours of rifts inside INDIA after that incident, when it was urged the Congress chief, Mallikarjun Kharge, be the bloc’s prime ministerial candidate.
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Sources have stated Nitish Kumar was sad with Lalan Singh as he did not undertaking his identify.
Mr Kharge was proposed by Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and her Delhi counterpart Arvind Kejriwal. Publicly, Nitish Kumar has insisted has no such ambitions, and solely needs to unite events against the BJP. “I felt no disappointment….no resentment,” Nitish Kumar had stated.
Mr Kharge, although, instantly squashed the transfer, declaring the Congress, and the INDIA bloc, first needed to win the election, and will then fear about selecting a Prime Minister.
That incident had highlighted what many see as severe rifts inside the INDIA bloc, which is meant to unite the opposition forward of the 2024 Lok Sabha election. However, the JDU had brushed apart any such speak and, in reality, Lalan Singh had stated, “All is well in INDIA bloc…”
READ | “All’s Well”: Bihar Ruling Alliance Denies Nitish Kumar “Upset”, INDIA Rift
The swap on the high of the JDU, although, has raised eyebrows in lots of circles, with critics of the celebration pointing to Nitish Kumar’s mercurial temperament, particularly the style through which he dropped the BJP as an ally in August final 12 months. That was after the JDU fared badly within the 2020 election, successful solely 45 seats, and Nitish Kumar returned as Chief Minister due to the BJP’s 74 seats.