New Delhi: The INDIA bloc is likely to face another jolt as speculations are rife that Bihar chief minister and JD-U president Nitish Kumar could go the TMC president and West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee way and part ways with the opposition alliance.
Sources say that Kumar, 72, might return to the BJP again as the saffron party's top leadership has had major deliberations in the last few days over Bihar's CM's return. According to Congress insiders, doubts over Nitish Kumar had arisen after the JD-U chief publicly thanked and praised PM Narendra Modi on January 24 for giving the country’s top civilian award Bharat Ratna to well-known state leader late Karpoori Thakur, who was closely linked to OBC politics
Kumar, in a veiled dig at RJD Chief Lalu Prasad, had said that Thakur was not a leader who promoted any of his family members. The statement further fuelled the speculations that he might return to the BJP again. “Karpoori Thakur was the biggest socialist leader of Bihar but did not promote any of his family members. He always thinks about the common people of Bihar and the country but some people are promoting only the family members and making them leaders,” Kumar said on Wednesday.
Sources in the BJP told ETV Bharat that Prime Minister Narendra Modi and party president JP Nadda held a meeting on Wednesday evening on the political situation in Bihar. They, however, did not confirm or deny if it was about Nitish Kumar's return. If Kumar manages to get back, it would be his fifth switch since 2013. He last switched sides in 2022, two years after he had walked out of the grand alliance and joined the NDA. As for Congress, it's hoping for the best but preparing for the worst amid the speculation.
According to Congress insiders, there were concerns within the party that Kumar, who recently became JD-U president and assumed total control over the party, could give a shocker to the opposition alliance on the lines of Mamata Banerjee, who announced on January 24 to fight the coming parliamentary polls alone. The timing of the Mamata shocker was crucial as it came a day ahead of the entry of Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra entry in West Bengal.
Congress insiders said the concern is now over Bihar where Rahul’s proposed rally in Purnea, Bihar on January 30 was being billed as a show of opposition unity. All the Congress allies like the RJD, JD-U and the Left parties were expected to attend the January 30 rally. However, there were concerns within the Congress on Thursday that Kumar may walk out of the INDIA alliance and could skip the Purnia rally.
“I wonder why Nitish Kumar is still with us. There is a concern within the party that he may go the Mamata Banerjee way. His public praise of PM Modi over Bharat Ratna for Karpoori Thakur has raised eyebrows within the party. If he chooses to leave the INDIA alliance, Nitish Kumar will certainly have a pre-poll pact with the BJP,” a former Union minister and senior Congress leader said on condition of anonymity.
The concern in Bihar prompted Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge to ask AICC in charge of state Mohan Prakash to make a fresh assessment of the ground-level situation and inform him. “I am going to meet the general secretary in charge of the state this evening. I would be able to say anything about the Nitish Kumar issue only after that. But I hope Nitish Kumar will attend the Jan 30 rally,” AICC secretary in charge of Bihar Ajay Kapoor told ETV Bharat.
“The Purnia rally will certainly convey a message of opposition unity if all allies attend. Invitations have been sent to all the allies. We are working hard for the rally,” Bihar Congress working president Kaukab Qadri told ETV Bharat.
Recently, the Chief Minister had suggested to ally Lalu Yadav that the assembly elections due in 2025 should be held along with the Lok Sabha polls to maximize the impact of the INDIA alliance but the RJD chief had rejected the proposal. “Nitish Kumar had enjoyed a free hand in the administration when he was with the BJP but has been facing hurdles from the influence that former chief minister Lalu Yadav wields in the government set-up. So, Nitish may be looking for an option,” said the former union minister. "I think Nitish Kumar will stay in the INDIA alliance and attend the Jan 30 rally," former AICC general secretary Shakeel Ahmed told ETV Bharat. (With inputs from Anamika Ratna)
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