Patna: Amid the political turmoil in Bihar, senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has called former Bihar CM Jitan Ram Manjhi and asked him to join the nationwide opposition alliance, INDIA, as per a report by India Today. Furthermore, state BJP President Samrat Choudhary has also reached out to the official residence of Hindustani Awam Morcha-Secular (HAM-S) patron Jitan Ram Manjhi in Patna on Saturday afternoon.
Bihar BJP Chief Meets Jitan Ram Manjhi
BJP President Samrat Choudhary was welcomed by Santosh Kumar Manjhi, national president of HAM-S. Choudhary met with all four MLAs of HAM-S in the presence of Jitan Ram Manjhi and Santosh Manjhi and the meeting went on for half an hour. After the meeting, Choudhary came out of Manjhi’s residence and did not interact with the media.
The four MLAs of HAM-S will be crucial in proving the majority in the Bihar assembly and before the governor. At present, JD-U has 45 MLAs, BJP has 78 MLAs and HAM-S has four MLAs totaling 127, which is just above the magical figure of 122 to form the government.
The BJP is keeping an eye on Jitan Ram Manjhi, as sources have said that the RJD is also trying to woo the four MLAs of HAM-S. If Nitish Kumar goes with the NDA, he has to parade the MLAs before the Bihar governor. RJD is not opening its card and may ask Nitish Kumar to prove the majority.
“Bihar Mein Abhi Khel Hona Baki Hai,” Tejashwi Yadav tells RJD leaders
Amid speculation that the grand alliance in Bihar might collapse after Chief Minister Nitish Kumar pulled out his Janata Dal (United), leaders of the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) on Saturday gathered at party supremo Lalu Prasad’s home in Patna for an emergency meeting convened by deputy chief minister Tejashwi Yadav.
Besides Lalu Prasad and his wife, Rabri Devi, a former chief minister, the meeting was attended by senior leaders, including members of the state legislature. Tejashwi Yadav told the leaders of the party present at the meeting that Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar is “respectable,” but there were many factors that were not under his “control,” the report said.
“CM Nitish Kumar was and is respectable. Many things are not under his (Nitish Kumar’s) control. RJD’s allies in the ‘Mahagathbandhan’ always respected the Chief Minister…” Tejashwi Yadav was quoted as saying this by the sources.
The report further said that Tejashwi had also hinted at many unexpected developments in the state.
“The Chief Minister used to sit with me on the stage and ask, “What was there in Bihar before 2005?” I never reacted… Now, more people are with us. Whatever remained undone in two decades, we managed to get it done within a short time—be it jobs, caste census, increasing reservations, etc. ‘Bihar mein abhi khel hona baki hain’ (The game is yet to begin in Bihar), Yadav reportedly said.
As per the current scenario, the Rashtriya Janata Dal is the largest party in the ‘Mahagathbandhan,’ which consists of Congress and three left parties. Notably, the coalition will fall eight members short of a majority in the assembly if Nitish Kumar’s JD (U) pulls out.
(With inputs from agencies)