Patna: Nitish Kumar will take oath for the fourth time as the chief minister of Bihar after his party Janata Dal (United) won its third Assembly elections in the state, this time in alliance with Mr Lalu Yadav’s RJD and the Congress. The massive mandate in favour of the Grand Secular Alliance, according to Mr Yadav and Mr Kumar, is because people want “development with justice”.
The important question now is that whether the success will create two power centres in Bihar. After facing a series of setbacks in previous elections, the RJD is all set to return as the single-largest party.
Experts say that as Mr Yadav’s party has emerged as the single-largest party and since he himself cannot take any important responsibility in the government, he may bargain for an important role for his family. Mr Yadav will be seen in the role of “big brother”, they feel.
Mr Yadav and Mr Kumar, who spoke to the media after the results in Patna, however downplayed the issue, saying, “We respect the people’s mandate and this kind of mandate is enough for us to understand what people want from us. Overall development will be our priority.”
Speculation is rife in Bihar that Mr Yadav may gun for a meatier role in the government, which is to be headed by Mr Kumar. Sources say that Mr Yadav may even ask for the position of deputy chief minister for one of his sons, most likely for his younger son Tejaswi, who won from Raghopur constituency.
“It is too early for us discuss these things. People gave us a massive mandate to work for the state and all of us are committed towards our duty,” Tejaswi told this newspaper after the results.
Clearly, neither Mr Yadav nor his son want to speak on the issue but there are indications that within a day or two, Mr Yadav, Mr Kumar and the Congress may meet and jointly discuss the issue.
Mr Yadav, who announced that he will soon launch a massive anti-RSS and BJP campaign from Varanasi, said: “My programme is all set. I will launch a massive campaign against the PM, RSS and the BJP from Varanasi, which is also the Lok Sabha constituency of the Prime Minister. I will see whether he has worked for the city or not but before leaving Bihar I would like to see the formation of a new government under Nitish Kumar.”
Observers interpret Mr Yadav’s statement as an indication that he wants an important role for his family as well for his party.
Mr Kumar, when asked to clarify his stand on the issue during a press meet in Patna while sharing the dais with Mr Yadav and state Congress president Ashok Choudhary, said: “We will sit and discuss on various issues soon, there is no problem within our alliance.”
He added: “We have to fulfil all our promises. We had launched a joint programme instead of a manifesto and my seven-point vision for development is also an integral part of that programme. All of us will work for the development of Bihar in a well-coordinated manner.”
