In a significant political development, chief of the Bihar-based Hindustani Awam Morcha (HAM) Jitan Ram Manjhi announced on Wednesday that his party has once again joined the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) after a meeting with Union Home Minister Amit Shah at his residence.
This move comes just two days after HAM withdrew its support from the Grand Alliance Government, consisting of the Congress, RJD, and JD(U), in Bihar.
“We are now an NDA partner starting today. We have agreed to support the NDA, and the NDA is also ready to be with us. That is what we discussed today,” Manjhi told reporters following the meeting.
Accompanied by his son Santosh Suman, Manjhi met with Shah at his residence in Delhi. On Monday, HAM withdrew its support to the Grand Alliance Government in Bihar, and submitted a letter to that effect to Governor Rajendra Arlekar.
Earlier, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar had accused Manjhi of “spying on the Mahagathbandhan allies” for the benefit of the BJP, expressing relief at Manjhi’s departure.
Suman resigned from Kumar’s Cabinet on June 13, citing “pressure” from the Janata Dal (United) to merge HAM with their party. Suman was serving as the Minister of Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs) Welfare Department in Bihar.
Manjhi, aged 78, served a brief tenure as the Chief Minister of Bihar in 2014 when Kumar stepped down, taking moral responsibility for JD-U’s poor performance in the Lok Sabha elections.
However, Manjhi’s time in power was marred by controversies, leading to his eventual resignation and Kumar’s return as the Chief Minister.
Since then, Manjhi left the JD(U), formed HAM, and joined the NDA, only to part ways in 2018. The party has faced challenges in achieving significant electoral success and has frequently changed its political alliances.