Nitish could re-embrace NDA between Jan 26 and 29
The departure of the Janata Dal (U) from the grand alliance seems inevitable, as the trust gap between the two ruling regional parties in Bihar, the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) and the Janata Dal (United), has grown following social media remarks made by the daughter of RJD chief Lalu Yadav on Thursday criticizing Chief Minister Nitish Kumar.
According to well-placed sources, Nitish could resign from the NDA between January 26 and 29. By the time the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra, headed by Rahul Gandhi, arrives in Bihar on January 30, politics in the state would be in disarray. Nitish’s defection may occur after February 4 if he stays quiet until January 29. On February 4 in West Champaran, he is anticipated to share the dais with Prime Minister Narendra Modi for a government function.
Per sources, the JD(U) is putting pressure on the BJP to allow Nitish to continue as chief minister till the 2025 assembly elections. We can live with two BJP deputy chief ministers. But the BJP wants the opposite: two JD(U) deputy chief ministers and a BJP chief minister. Negotiations are likely to be used to resolve it, according to a BJP senior in Patna. The BJP is trying to gain traction with the 36% of the electorate that Nitish controls—the extremely backward classes (EBCs).
“Nitish ji has made a significant contribution to these classes’ voters. Though quiet, the EBCs influence votes in Bihar. They are still essentially with Nitish,” a BJP official said. Recently, the talk about Nitish became stronger when Union Home Minister Amit Shah remarked that the BJP would consider the suggestion if it came up, in response to questions from the media over the Chief Minister’s potential return to the NDA. Bihar-based BJP officials traveled to Delhi earlier in the day to confer with Shah. Lalu’s daughter indirectly targeted Nitish with several tweets that she subsequently removed, perhaps in retaliation for his perceived assault on dynasty politics. According to JD(U) insiders, the jobs may have provided Nitish with the ideal justification to go.
