All the political talk is about how Home Minister Amit Shah managed to get the support of the opposition parties like the AAP, the BSP and the BJD in effectively scrapping Article 370 for Jammu and Kashmir. But Nitish Kumar, the BJP’s alliance partner and JD(U) president, did not support the Narendra Modi government – either on Kashmir or on triple talaq. On both these bills, JD(U) MPs abstained from voting. This is a far more surprising development because the JD(U) and the BJP are partners in Bihar government and the state will go to polls next year.

So, what could have prompted Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar to take this stand? There are three possible explanations:

1. JD(U) is taking a principled position: The Janata Dal (United) is against the Uniform Civil Code, the abolition of Article 370, and the construction of Ram Temple at the disputed site in Ayodhya. So, its opposition to the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill, 2019, and the Jammu and Kashmir (Reorganisation) Bill, 2019, stems from there. Nitish Kumar has maintained that although the JD(U) has partnered with the BJP, it won’t support the party on these three contentious issues. (The BJP’s opposition over triple talaq is part of its larger plan to move towards bringing a Uniform Civil Code in India.) In doing so, the JD(U) has tried to protect its ‘political identity’ and also insured that it attracts support from a section of Muslims. Nitish Kumar’s stand was no different when his Samata Party had joined hands with the Atal Bihari Vajpayee-led BJP in 1996. His decision now to oppose Modi’s BJP follows its stance of keeping its socialist culture intact. This is significant because Nitish Kumar understands the risks involved here – the JD(U) could find itself being labelled as anti-women, pro-Muslim or even anti-national by BJP supporters. But more importantly, the JD(U) has put the Bihar government at risk, because it is dependent on the support of BJP MLAs.

In that case, it’s prudent for Nitish Kumar to chart his own ways in terms of ideology and political formations and alliances. For this, he needs strong differentiators. Triple talaq bill and the scrapping of Article 370 or reorganisation of Jammu and Kashmir are perhaps those differentiators. It will help the JD(U) in forging an alliance with secular parties while also keeping the possibility of winning Muslim votes alive. At this moment we do not know what the RJD, facing an existential crisis, will do. Will it align with the JD(U) again? Will their alliance be able to stop the juggernaut of the BJP in Bihar?

The answers may appear unclear now but Nitish Kumar’s challenge to Narendra Modi’s BJP at its peak is unmistakable.

The author is a senior journalist. Views are personal.

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