A day after the lone woman Minister of the Nitish Kumar Cabinet, Renu Kushwaha resigned from the Ministry, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Tuesday filled the gap by appointing another party MlA lesi Singh as Minister in his Cabinet but his move immediately triggered voice of protest from party leaders.
lesi Singh, wife of slain ganglord Butan Singh is JD(U) MlA from Dhamdaha Assembly constituency of Purnea. Earlier, she was also former chairperson of Bihar Women’s Commission. lesi Singh took oath of Minister by Bihar Governor DY Patil at Raj Bhawan in presence of Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and other senior Ministers of his Cabinet. Sources in the party said that after Renu Kushwaha’s resignation from the Cabinet it was obligatory for the Nitish Government to make a woman Minister in the Cabinet.
Earlier, after much coaxing and persuasion to withdraw her resignation Chief Minister Nitish Kumar had accepted Kushwaha’s resignation on Tuesday morning and had forwarded it to the Governor. Kushwaha, an MlA from Bihariganj in Madhepura, was Minister for Industries and Disaster Management in the Nitish Cabinet and had resigned from the Ministry on ‘moral ground’ saying that since her husband had joined the BJP she morally should not be the Minister in the Nitish Cabinet.
However, sources in the party told The Pioneer that Renu Kushwaha wanted party ticket for her husband, Vijay Singh Kushwaha from Madhepura lok Sabha seat but when denied, her husband joined the BJP in presence of party PM nominee Narendra Modi at Purnea rally on Monday. Significantly, another Minister in the Nitish Kumar Cabinet Praveen Amanullah was the first woman Minister who had not only resigned from the Ministry but also had quit the party to join the Aam Aadmi Party.
Commenting on Renu Kushwaha’s resignation from the Ministry, State JD(U) president Basistha Narayan Singh said that there was no need for the her resignation. “In a democratic framework it’s possible that husband and wife can be member of different political parties,” explained the JD(U) State president. “It was decision taken by her in a hurry...she should not have done this,” he said.
However, the poll observers of the State believe that Kushwaha’s resignation would have a major impact on Nitish Kumar-led JD(U)’s poll performance in the coming polls. “The Kushwahas comprise about 5 per cent of the electorate in Bihar, next only to the Yadav caste among Other Backward Castes,” said one of them. “They have traditionally been voting in tandem with the Kurmi caste of which Chief Minister Nitish Kumar belongs to and that was the reason why the BJP successfully weaned away Renu Kushwaha from JD(U),” he explained further.
Meanwhile, inclusion of lesi Singh in the Cabinet has instantly triggered a voice of dissent in the party. Party MlA Neeraj Kumar Babloo and strongman Ajay Singh, husband of JD(U) MlA from Daruanda in Siwan have said that whatever decision party was taking was not in the interest of the party’s future. Ajay Singh also said that the party leadership was ignoring opinions of party workers and leaders while taking unanimous decision on ticket distribution or making Ministers. Ajay Singh said that he too wanted to contest the upcoming lok Sabha from Siwan.
Earlier on Monday, another JD(U) MlA and a close aide of Nitish Kumar, Gyanendra Singh Gyanu too had raised objections over the manner party has been giving tickets to outsiders and “the way the old leaders have been quitting party”. “From our old days of the Samata Party, only Damodar Singh Raut and Renu Kushwaha were left. The party should think over this,” said Gyanu, an MlA from Barh Assembly constituency.
Meanwhile, taking a dig at the leaders deserting Nitish Kumar, RJD boss lalu Prasad told mediapersons that there has been a scramble in Nitish Kumar’s party. “Nitish ke party mein bhagdar macha hai…aag lagi hain JD(U) mein…Nitish ko koi aadmi nahi mil raha hain to hamari party ko tod raha hai logo ko le jane ke liye,” mocked lalu Prasad.