The Leader of the Opposition in the Bihar Assembly, Tejashwi Yadav, said on Friday that his party would try to bring a no-confidence motion against the Janata Dal (United)-BJP government in the State.
“If not in this session, in the next one,” the Rashtriya Janata Dal leader told journalists outside the Assembly, adding that a no-confidence motion is “not always to bring the government down, but also to expose the government’s failures”.
The monsoon session of the Bihar Legislature started on Friday. It was later adjourned till Monday.
Praises Rahul
Mr. Yadav, the younger son of party chief Lalu Prasad, said the Narendra Modi government might survive the no-confidence motion in Parliament, “but it has fallen in the eyes of the people of the country.”
He was all praise for Congress president Rahul Gandhi’s speech in Parliament and his gestures. “Oh that wink my friend! Hit them hard where it hurts... Congratulations for unearthing their mine of lies & a fantastic speech,” tweeted Mr. Yadav.
He slammed the Nitish government for its failure to help tackle an impending drought in Bihar and a flood-like situation in the northern parts of the State.
Opposition’s right
Minister for Urban Development and Housing Suresh Sharma acknowledged that it was the Opposition’s right to bring a no-confidence motion. “But the numbers are in favour of the Nitish-led government. So if the RJD brings a no-confidence motion, it will suffer a humiliating setback,” he said.
The Bihar Assembly has 243 legislators. The RJD is the single largest party with 81 MLAs, while the JD(U) and the BJP have 71 and 53 MLAs respectively. The Congress has 27 legislators. Chief Minister Nitish Kumar also enjoys the support of eight MLAs — two MLAs each of the Rashtriya Lok Samata Party and the Lok Janshakti Party plus Independents.