Claiming that the Nitish Kumar Government is on its last legs in Bihar, the BJP on Tuesday said more than 52 “disgruntled” JD(U) MlAs were in touch with the party and worked for “the success of “its candidates in the lok Sabha polls, triggering a backlash from the ruling party that portrayed a picture in contrast “favouring” the JD(U).
The BJP said that the JD(U) MlAs “not happy with the autocratic functioning” of the Chief Minister have contacted party leaders.“More than 50 JD(U) MlAs are in touch with us. They have openly supported us and worked for our candidates in this lok Sabha polls. They are not happy with the way things are in Bihar now,” senior BJP leader Sushil Kumar Modi told reporters at the airport here before leaving for campaigning.“Nitish Kumar’s political graph has plummeted and these JD(U) MlAs are supporting us out of their fear that RJD and lalu Prasad may come back to power in Bihar. They don’t want this to happen. They do not want the State to slip back to its old days,” he said.
BJP national spokesperson Syed Shahnawaz Hussain maintained “there is a churning in the JD(U)” and JD(U) MlAs want to breathe free. Hussain attributed reaction in the JD(U) to “the autocratic functioning” of the Chief Minister who has favoured a few of his own men and made selections for the Rajya Sabha and Vidhan Sabha at his own will without adopting democratic ways.
According to sources, JD(U) president Sharad Yadav “is also warming up to the BJP”.Coming just a day before seven lS constituencies go to polls in Bihar and elections for six more seats would be held on May 12, the JD(U) termed it a strategy to exert pressure on officials. It claimed the situation was actually the contrary with many BJP MlAs being seen in Nitish’ rallies.Bihar Food Minister and Kumar’s close confidant Shyam Rajak claimed that the situation was quite the opposite as many BJP MlAs were seen at the Chief Minister’s poll rallies whereas no JD(U) MlA could be seen with them.
“Modi is a product of RSS school of thought, holds master’s degree in propaganda and believes in the theory of Goebbels (Hitler’s Propaganda Minister),” he added.JD(U) spokesman Rajiv Ranjan Prasad said the statement was part of a strategy to create “pressure” on officials ahead of the remaining two phases of polling in the State and urged the Election Commission to take notice of it and initiate necessary action.
The Nitish Kumar Government in Bihar is in power with the support of the Congress and some non-RJD MlAs, although the Congress has gone with lalu Prasad’s RJD in the lok Sabha elections.Responding to BJP’s claim, RJD president lalu Prasad said, “Right now everybody is engaged in the lok Sabha elections. So what is the logic of talking about State politics.”“It is like being in Ranchi but talking about Karachi,” he added. like Bihar, Uttarakhand and Jharkhand Governments are also running on a thin ice. There is a buzz about the BJP going for the kill in the three States where the Governments are surviving on wafer-thin majority.
In the 70-member Uttarakhand Assembly, the Congress has 32 MlAs — four short of the majority figure surviving on the support of seven legislators of the Progressive Democratic Front.Asked about a possible change in Uttarakhand, Rajya Sabha member from Uttarakhand Tarun Vijay said there could be a change of dispensation in Uttarakhand after the lok Sabha polls “which may return five MPS” to the lok Sabha from the hill State.
In Jharkhand, the Hemant Soren Government of the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha is surviving by a majority of just one seat in the 79-member Assembly.