PATNA: A day after CM Nitish Kumar declared that “there would not be any further delay" in the nomination of MLCs from the governor’s quota, both major ruling parties—BJP and JD(U)-- have expedited the process for finalisation of names to fill-up the 12 nomination seats in the 75-member legislative council.
Aspirants for the governor quota seats in both BJP and JD(U) have now intensified their lobbying with their respective senior leaders.
Two of the 12 seats are vacant since May 2019 after Rajiv Ranjan Singh and Pashupati Kumar Paras resigned after their election to the Lok Sabha from Munger and Hajipur respectively, while the rest 10 seats fell vacant on May 24 last year after their six-year term ended.
Article 171 (3) (e) of the Constitution empowers the governor to nominate members against 12 seats in the 75-member state legislative council.
Article 171(5) of Constitution requires that persons to be appointed should have special knowledge or practical experience in literature, science, arts, cooperative movement and social service.
Sources said BJP and JD(U) has agreed to share the 12 seats on 50:50 basis.
Of the total 12 seats, two are being considered as ‘reserved’ for the two cabinet ministers-- Ashok Choudhary and Janak Ram – who are currently not the member of any of the two houses of the state legislature. As per the constitutional provisions, Choudhary and Ram require to be a member of either of the two houses to continue as ministers after six months of their induction in the state cabinet.
Sources said BJP’s state leadership has sent an informal list of 18 to 20 prominent members against the party’s six seats– average three names against each vacant seat—to its central leadership for finalization. The saffron party has prepared its list keeping in mind the caste equation and experience of the party workers, a senior BJP leader said on Saturday.
From Bhumihar caste the party’s state vice-president Devesh Kumar, former MLCs Radha Mohan Sharma and Krishna Kumar Singh (Gaya district) are said to be the front runners for the MLC seat. Similarly from the Rajput community, Nivedita Singh (Sasaram) and Ram Naresh Singh (Saharsa) are said to be on the state BJP’s list.
From Vaishya community, former MLC Rajendra Gupta (who is considered close to BJP chief J P Nadda) and the state organizing secretary Shiv Narayan Mahto are being considered as the front runner.
From the extremely backward classes (EBCs), the names of Miss Baby Chanky (Munger), Pramod Chandravanshi and Jainath Chauhan are said to be recommended to the BJP’s central leadership, sources said.
A three-term ward councillor and one-term deputy mayor in the Munger Municipal Corporation, Baby Chanky is said to be the front runner among all the BJP aspirants as she has the backing of several senior leaders of the BJP and the RSS, a party leader told TOI on Saturday.
In the JD(U), sources said, the list of six persons for the governor’s quota post would be finalized by the party’s top leaders like Nitish Kumar and national president RCP Singh. Some former MLCs like Lalan Kumar Sarraf, Prof Ram Bachan Roy and Ranbir Nandan who are considered close to the party’s top leaders might be given one more term in the council, sources said.