Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar. Press Trust of India file photo
Amid hectic efforts to save the grand alliance, a section in Nitish Kumar’s JD(U) is putting pressure on the Bihar chief minister not to rock the boat.
With rising tension in the state coalition over a CBI FIR against RJD chief Lalu Prasad and his son and Deputy Chief Minister Tejashwi Yadav, senior JD(U) leaders like Sharad Yadav have conveyed to Nitish it is not prudent to disturb the existing system at this juncture as it would only help the BJP.
Sources said if Nitish insists on Tejashwi’s resignation, Lalu could pull out of the government and provide outside support to the grand alliance.
This arrangement, they said, would not be feasible for long, and may result in snap elections. Fissures appeared in the grand alliance of the JD(U), RJD and Congress after Nitish announced support to NDA Presidential candidate Ram Nath Kovind, and the CBI registered a case against Tejashwi.
The JD(U) has demanded that Tejashwi be removed from the Cabinet, but Lalu said there is no question of a resignation. With the JD(U) upping the ante over the continuance of Tejashwi, sources said Nitish wants to protect his “clean image”.
Nitish’s decision to back Kovind, though it was described as a “one-time affair”, and the pressure to sack Tejashwi have given rise to speculation that he is getting to ready snap ties with the RJD.
BJP not far behind
The BJP has also been actively wooing Nitish. LJP chief Ram Vilas Paswan, a BJP ally from Bihar, warned Nitish that Lalu may break away from the JD(U) if he does not act fast.