Bihar political crisis: From Nitish Kumar to Tejashwi Yadav and Lalan Singh, key players in developments

Bihar on Tuesday saw many political twists and turns with Nitish Kumar meeting Governor Phagu Chauhan twice – first, to submit his resignation as chief minister of the NDA and then again to stake his claim for the top job in the state after being elected leader of the RJD-led Mahagathbandhan (grand alliance).

During the first meeting with Chauhan, he informed him that the decision to sever ties with the NDA was taken by his party, the JD(U). After meeting Chauhan, Kumar went to the residence of former chief minister Rabri Devi to confabulate with RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav.

Later, he called on the governor again and staked claim to form the government after getting the support of Mahagathbandhan constituents – the RJD, Left parties and the Congress.

In the state Assembly, which has an effective strength of 242, requiring 121 MLAs for a majority, the RJD has the highest number of 79 MLAs followed by the BJP (77) and the JD(U) with 44.

The JD(U) also enjoys the support of four MLAs of former Chief Minister Jitan Ram Manjhi’s Hindustani Awam Morcha and an Independent.

The Congress has 19 MLAs while the CPIML(L) has 12 and CPI and CPI(M) have two each. Besides, one MLA belongs to Asaduddin Owaisi’s AIMIM.

The NDA-led government in the state was formed after the 2020 Bihar polls.

Let’s take a look at the key players in the Bihar political crisis:

Nitish Kumar: Old fox outwits foes

The JD(U) chief seems to have, at least for the moment, outmanouvered his foes yet again.

His move, as a reflection of what happened in 2017 when he left the Mahagathbandhan to rejoin the NDA, leaves ally BJP out in the cold for the second time in nine years.

Kumar is understood to have told party legislators and MPs, at a meeting he convened at his official residence, that he had been driven against the wall by the BJP which tried to weaken his JD(U), first by propping up Chirag Paswan’s rebellion and later through the party’s former national president RCP Singh.

Nitish ended a whirlwind Tuesday by claiming the support of seven Mahagathbandhan parties and 164 MLAs, and according to reports, is set to be sworn in as chief minister of Bihar for a record eight time.

Political scientist Ranabir Samaddar, former professor of Maulana Azad Institute of Asian Studies told The Hindu, “Bihar has become the flipside of the Maharashtra coin.”

His frequently changing sides may have lowered his standing, but his political ability to achieve the impossible remains, he added.

CPIML(L) general secretary Dipankar Bhattacharya told the newspaper Nitish could make life difficult for the BJP.

“If he sustains the momentum of what he managed to do now with his new movement, then 2024 general elections in Bihar, where 40 crucial seats will go to polls, will prove to be a real battleground for the BJP.”

The 71-year-old Kumar has come a long way since he began his career as engineer in the Bihar Electricity Board.

Kumar took the political plunge under socialist leader Ram Manohar Lohia and participated in Jayprakash Narayan’s movement in the 1970s.

Who knows, perhaps even a run at the prime ministership could be within Nitish’s reach.

Tejashwi Yadav: Lalu’s heir and RJD leader primed for plum post

The RJD leader is primed for a plum post.

Reports have emerged that the son of RJD supremo Lalu Prasad Yadav and his political heir will be appointed deputy chief minister of Bihar.

Party sources earlier in the day said Tejashwi would get home ministry and that while Nitish will continue to be the chief minister till 2024, an understanding has been reached that a power transition will occur before 2025 and that the alliance will contest under Tejashwi.

This, even as two of Lalu’s daughters put out tweets signalling a change of guard in Bihar and another describing the state as synonymous with legendary Chanakya.

Rohini Acharya even shared a video of a Bhojpuri singer featuring his catchy number “Lalu Bina Chalu Bihar Na Hoi” in one of her tweets with a caption: “Rajtilak ki karo tayyari, aa rahe hain laltendhari” (the lantern of course is the party symbol of Rashrtriya Janata Dal (RJD), which was the principal opposition in the Bihar Assembly).

Acharya shared a poster hailing her father as a “kingmaker”.

In another tweet, she wrote: “Boya ped babool ka, aam kaehan se hoi” and alleged that the “hunger for power” will make BJP sink from across the country one day. She also mocked the saffron party, in a tweet in Hindi which said: “People in BJP had told us to change DP, we Laluvadis changed the government only.”

Raj Lakshmi Yadav, youngest daughter of Lalu Yadav also took to Twitter to share old images of her father, one showing him with his children.

In a tweet in Hindi, she said, “Shankhanad! Pehle di Pankh, ab denge udaan. Chanakaya matlab Bihar, Bihari matlab Chanakya. Farzi Chanakayagiri Bihar ke bahar chalaiega. Bole Bihar - Tejashwi Bhav: Sarkar” and tagged Tejashwi.

BJP governor Phagu Chauhan: All eyes on BJP’s ‘inspired’ choice

All eyes are now on Phagu Chauhan, the 40th governor of Bihar.

Chauhan, 73, who was sworn-in as governor in 2019, succeeded Lalji Tandon.

As per Indian Express, the selection of Chauhan, a former Uttar Pradesh BJP leader with roots in the RSS, was considered an inspired choice by the Narendra Modi government as he is a leader of the Lonia community from neighbouring Uttar Pradesh.

With elections due in Bihar, the move was seen as clever play by the BJP to woo the OBC group, which has large numbers in the state.

He has had some run-ins with Nitish, notably in November 2021 over steps to be taken on corruption charges levelled against some vice-chancellors, as per the report.

While Nitish reportedly pressed for a harsher line on the V-Cs, Bihar education minister Vijay Kumar Choudhary even skipped a Raj Bhavan event over the matter.

Chauhan had in 2021 suspended 12 assistant professors of Rajendra College, Chapra, for dancing to Bollywood tunes and pop music with their family members and students at the institution’s annual day function, triggering charges of “moral policing”.

The governor — chancellor of all state universities — had also suspended principal Premendra Ranjan Singh, indicted by a probe for “cake-cutting” and “inserting item songs and dance” into an event held on the birth anniversary of India’s first President, Rajendra Prasad, after whom the college is named.

Chauhan had also suspended three professors of Jai Prakash University, to which Rajendra College is affiliated, on the charge of failing to carry out an “impartial” inquiry into the dance controversy and “giving benefits” to the dancing teachers.

Chauhan was six-time MLA from Ghosi Assembly constituency in Uttar Pradesh’s Mau district.

After having won the Assembly election for the first time in 1985 on a Dalit Mazdoor Kisan Party (DMKP) symbol, he was returned as an MLA again in 1991 on a Janata Dal ticket.

He won the seat in 1996 and 2002 on the BJP symbol.

Chauhan again won Ghosi in May 2007 on a BSP ticket but later returned to the saffron party and won the Assembly election for the sixth time in March 2017.

Assembly Speaker Vijay Kumar Sinha: Set to play key role amid storm

Amid a brewing political storm in the state, Bihar Assembly Speaker Vijay Kumar Sinha is set to play a key role in determining the legitimacy of any new formulation.

A dedicated worker of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, Sinha served as MLA from Lakhisarai, winning the constituency three times in a row since 2010, as per Indian Express.

A Bhumihar leader, he is an engineer by qualification and also the first leader of the BJP to be appointed the Speaker of the state Assembly, as per the report.

A day after he tested positive for COVID-19, Sinha, a BJP MLA and senior leader, said his test reports have come out negative.

Many took to the micro-blogging site to express astonishment at the speed with which the Speaker and senior BJP leader was declared COVID negative and wondered what developments were in store for Bihar next.

What complicates things further is that Sinha has had several run-ins with Nitish, as per Financial Express.

Nitish, for his part, is not particularly fond of the Speaker and is believed to have repeatedly demanded his removal from the post but to no avail.

Their conflict was viewed by some as a reflection of strained relations between the BJP and JD(U).

Sinha’s negative COVID test came just a day after members of the Ethics Committee of the Assembly, headed by another BJP leader Ram Narayan Mandal, met Sinha and submitted a report.

While Mandal declined to divulge details, citing confidentiality, sources in the party said the report was about an incident of March last year when Opposition RJD MLAs had held the Speaker hostage inside his chair and police was called in.

The sources said the report indicts about 18 MLAs, whose names were not known.

Vidhan Sabha secretariat officials said that in such cases, a notice is issued to the MLAs concerned upon the advice of the Speaker, who may decide further action, and even order disqualification, based on how satisfactory or otherwise he deems their reply.

The RJD has 79 MLAs in the Assembly, which has an effective strength of 242. It is the single largest party and disqualification of its MLAs will reduce its ability to steer a political upheaval.

Sinha could thus play a key role in upcoming events and make things more difficult for his bete noire Nitish.

RCP Singh: Ex-Nitish protégé slams JD(U) chief, says joining BJP an option

RCP Singh, the JD(U)’s former national president and once among Nitish’s closest aides, resigned from the party on Saturday after a fallout with his former mentor and amid allegations of corruption.

It was more than a decade ago that RCP Singh quit the Indian Administrative Service (IAS) to join Nitish’s JD(U). RCP had earned Kumar’s trust and respect while on central deputation when the latter was a Union minister.

Singh made the announcement at a press conference he convened at his ancestral village in Nalanda district, hours after he was served a letter by the party leadership seeking an explanation about allegations of corruption circulating in the media.

“I cannot take it anymore though I am yet to receive the letter,” claimed Singh, who appeared well aware of the contents of the communication issued by JD(U) state president Umesh Singh Kushwaha, citing complaints of unidentified party workers that the bureaucrat-turned-politician had amassed “huge property” from 2013 onwards.

“I have had a good career in the IAS as well as in politics. Nobody has ever been able to raise a finger on my probity,” said a visibly upset Singh who had to give up his ministerial berth recently on account of the party denying him another term in the Rajya Sabha.

Singh had no kind words for his former mentor, saying: “He will not become (the PM) even if he were to be reborn seven times.”

He further accused Nitish of of having “not even shown the courtesy to inform me beforehand that I was not being considered for another term in the Rajya Sabha”.

“This talk of my having served two consecutive terms does not hold because had it been a party policy it should have been applicable to all. Even the current national president Rajiv Ranjan Singh alias Lalan has served more than two terms in the Lok Sabha,” he said.

He minced no words in accusing his boss of complacency on which he blamed the JD(U)’s dwindling fortunes.

“Have you seen any other chief minister who wastes three hours every evening enjoying gossip over snacks with members of his coterie? He (Nitish) was a different man in his first term from 2005-2010 for which he is still remembered and respected. We used to tell him that he was a prime minister material and it seems that went to his head,” alleged Singh, who had joined the JD(U) in 2010.

The former bureaucrat took care to take no names though he dropped ample hints that he suspected leaders like Upendra Kushwaha to be behind a “conspiracy” against him.

“There is no remedy for envy. Some people resented my induction into the Union Cabinet. Those who had fought the last assembly polls as chief ministerial candidates of non-starter coalitions are now occupying the centre stage in the JD(U). The party is now finished. I am giving up my primary membership,” Singh said.

Notably, Kushwaha had earlier in the day sought to twist the knife by stating that investigating agencies could take suo motu cognisance of allegations against Singh and take appropriate action.

A former Union minister himself, Kushwaha had re-entered JD(U) last year, merging his Rashtriya Lok Samata Party, a move that was seen as Kumar’s attempt to consolidate his OBC base but had left RCP Singh, the then national president, unhappy.

“No case can be made out against my wife and my two daughters, who have been dragged into this matter. I would like to say that those living in glass houses must not hurl stones at others,” said Singh.

Incidentally, one of Singh’s daughters, Lipi, is a Bihar cadre IPS officer and currently posted as the superintendent of police of Saharsa district.

Singh also mocked JD(U) leaders, including JDU party president Lalan  Singh who had taken exception to “RCP should be our CM” slogan being raised by supporters.

“Did anybody say I should be made the CM removing the current one. What was there to be so insecure?” he asked sarcastically.

The departure of the former Union minister from the party was seen as the final straw as the JD(U) accused the BJP of attempting to engineer a split in the party.

Where does RCP Singh go from here? He has himself admitted that the BJP is an option.

Lalan Singh: JDU party president sturdies ship for fight

The JD(U) party president Rajiv Ranjan Singh, aka Lalan Singh is one of Nitish’s closest and most trusted leaders. He has played a big role in building the party.

As per Navbharat Times, Lalan Singh is one of the JD(U)’s prominent upper caste faces and is incidentally Nitish’s classmate.

The JD(U) MP from Munger was in 2021 chosen as the party’s national president as a replacement for RCP Singh following RCP’s induction as a cabinet minister in the Modi-led government.

He was  active in student politics, previously being the general secretary of College Students Union.

Lalan Singh also actively participated in the movement led by Lok Nayak Jai Prakash Narain in 1974.

On Saturday, Lalan Singh slammed RCP Singh, accusing him of serving as a tool to damage the party’s prospects. The JD-U’s ship is sailing, not sinking, he said in response to RCP Singh’s JD(U) is sinking jibe.

“Yes, it is true that some of the people tried to make the hole in the bottom of ship to make it sink but we spotted it within time and repaired it,” Lalan Singh said while accusing RCP Singh of damaging the party but “our leader Nitish Kumar spotted his activities and did appropriate treatment”.

“R.C.P. Singh has his body in the JD-U but his heart is somewhere else. During the 2020 Assembly election, Chirag (Chirag Paswan) model was used to conspire against the JD-U to damage Nitish Kumar. This was the reason why our party reached 43 seats. This time, they were using R.C.P. Singh to do a conspiracy against Nitish Kumar. Our leader has spotted it within time and destroyed their conspiracy.”

“We have every proof about the conspiracy being done against Nitish Kumar and the JD-U. It will be disclosed publicly when time comes.

“RCP Singh was not a friend when our party was struggling. He does not know anything about the struggle. He does not know about the Samta Party. He was a friend of the ruling party. In 2005, he came to the Chief Minister’s house as a secretary of Nitish Kumar. In 2009, he was wanting to contest the Lok Sabha election but Nitish Kumar refused. In 2010, R.C.P. Singh said that he wanted to go to Rajya Sabha and Nitish Kumar sent him. Who knows R.C.P. Singh? It was Nitish Kumar who gave him political identity and trusted him for a long time,” Lalan Singh said.

Chirag Paswan: Set to continue battle with Nitish

For former Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) chief Chirag Paswan, it seems that his battle with Nitish is set to continue with JD(U) leaders in recent days making allusions to the 2020 ‘Chirag model’.

Chirag had led the charge against Chief Minister Nitish Kumar in the 2020 Assembly elections in what some have alleged was part of a plot of the BJP to wedge its way into the ruling coalition.

Chirag had fielding nominees against all JD(U) candidates, many of them rebels from the BJP.

Although the NDA secured the majority, JD(U) ended up winning in 43 seats as opposed to the 71 seats in the previous Assembly polls, leaving the BJP with the upper hand.

A furious Chirag  on Tuesday slammed Nitish and backing the BJP, demanded President’s Rule in Bihar. He demanded that fresh Assembly elections be held to allow people to give a fresh mandate.

Chirag, the former LJP chief and son of ex-Union minister Ram Vilas Pawan, said Kumar has lost all credibility and predicted zero seats for JD(U) in the next elections.

“Today credibility of Nitish Kumar is zero. We want President rule in Bihar and the state should go for a fresh mandate. Do you (Nitish Kumar )have any ideology or not? In next polls, JDU will get zero seats,” said Chirag.

Asked about his own role going forward, Chirag told The Times of India, “I have not yet taken any decision on this.”

With inputs from agencies

Read all the Latest News , Trending News , Cricket News , Bollywood News , India News and Entertainment News here. Follow us on Facebook , Twitter and Instagram .