BJP’s second largest alliance partner in NDA, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar-led Janata Dal (United) on Thursday sought for a review of the Agnipath scheme, “pursue” of the caste census issue and a review on Uniform Civil Code (UCC), a poll pitch made by the Congress-led INDIA Bloc in the just concluded general elections.
And not only this, a day after committing for unconditional support to Narendra Modi to move ahead with his third term as Prime Minister, the party said it will make a bid for “up to three” Cabinet berths based on the formula one Minister over four MPs. JD (U) sources said the party is keen on portfolios such as railways, rural development, agriculture, water resources and heavy industries.
“There is anger among voters on the (short-term army recruitment) Agniveer scheme. Our party wants those shortcomings to be removed, on which people have objections,” said JD(U) spokesman and a former Rajya Sabha MP KC Tyagi.
Asked if his party will push for a caste census, Tyagi said, “No party in the country has denied a caste census. Bihar has shown the way, the Prime Minister also did not oppose... It is the demand of the time, and we will pursue it.”
Further, he also said the JD(U) is not opposed to the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) but all stakeholders should be consulted on it. “On the UCC, the Chief Minister (Nitish Kumar) had written to the Law Commission. We are not against the UCC. But there should be consultation with all the stakeholders, Chief Ministers, political parties and different sects, and a resolution should be found,” he said.
In its support to the BJP as a member of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), JD(U) said, “There is no pre-condition, there is unconditional support. But it is in our mind that Bihar should be given special status. After bifurcation, the situation Bihar has faced, it cannot be corrected without granting it special status.”
Support from allies like the JD(U) and Chandrababu Naidu-led TDP is crucial for the BJP as it could not reach the majority mark on its own in the Lok Sabha election The BJP bagged 240 seats, 32 short of an absolute majority. Among its allies, N Chandrababu Naidu’s Telugu Desam Party (TDP) and Nitish Kumar’s JD(U), which won 16 and 12 seats in Andhra Pradesh and Bihar, respectively, and other alliance partners, the NDA has 293 seats.
With 12 MPs, the JD(U) is the second biggest BJP ally after the Telugu Desam Party’s 16. “We are now eyeing up to three Cabinet berths...,” another close aide of Nitish said requesting not be named as of now since talks are going on.
Another top party leader said it is hopeful of a “respectable” representation in the Union Council of Ministers. “The matter of Cabinet berths will be decided by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and our party chief Nitish. But, it should be respectable,” said Shrawan Kumar, JD(U) leader and Bihar Rural Development Minister.
He also said the matter of representation in the Union Cabinet should be decided keeping the 2025 Bihar Assembly polls in mind. In 2019, a “token representation” of just one berth had been turned down by Nitish.
Among the frontrunners for ministerial berths in the party include its Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Jha, Rajiv Ranjan Singh ‘Lalan’, Kaushalendra Kumar, Ramprit Mandal and Lovely Anand, they said.
