New Delhi: As political circles in Patna went abuzz Wednesday about the possibility of Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar entering Rajya Sabha to make way for his successor, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was keeping its fingers crossed.
Multiple BJP leaders ThePrint spoke to said that while the Janata Dal (United) leaders were largely unanimous about sending the CM to the Rajya Sabha– with Thursday being the last date for filing nomination papers– there was no final word from Nitish himself.
Called ‘Paltu Ram’ by his political adversaries for switching sides frequently, Kumar’s silence on the issue is keeping leaders of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) on tenterhooks.
Several JD(U) leaders confirmed that Nitish was “all set” to go to the Rajya Sabha, but added in the same breath that nothing was final until they heard from Nitish late Wednesday night or early Thursday.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s scheduled visit to Bihar on Thursday has further intensified the speculation, although Bihar BJP leaders told ThePrint that BJP national president Nitin Nabin would be filing his nomination papers for the Rajya Sabha on Thursday and that Shah could be coming for it.
The BJP has been keen on a change of guard in Bihar as early as possible. Last year, when the NDA announced its seat-sharing formula for the Bihar elections, the JD(U) and the BJP contested an equal number of seats– sending out the message that neither of them would act as the “big brother”.
A few months later, the BJP is now the “big brother” with 89 MLAs as against the JDU’s 85. Key reasons cited for the BJP pushing for a change of guard in the state include concerns about the CM’s health and governance, the need to ensure a graceful exit for him, and the desire to have a BJP chief minister for the first time in the state.
Even before the Assembly elections, the JD(U) leadership has virtually controlled access to the 75-year-old CM, who did not give any media interviews or had any interaction with people beyond a small circle of JD(U) leaders and bureaucrats.
“In 2024 for the Lok Sabha elections, the BJP contested one more seat than the JD(U) and its symbolic significance was not lost on anyone as it was seen as the end of Nitish Kumar’s ‘big brother’ stature in the alliance,” a senior BJP leader said.
“The BJP decided to contest an equal number of seats in 2025 to keep the alliance intact and is now offering a ‘graceful exit’ to Nitish. But Nitish has to accept the offer first.”
The speculation gained credence from a late-evening JD(U) meeting attended by working president Sanjay Kumar Jha with senior leaders. The Chief Minister will take call on moving to the Rajya Sabha, Bihar Cabinet minister Vijay Kumar Chaudhary told the media Wednesday night.
Nitish has taken oath as the Bihar Chief Minister a record 10 times. He has been in the seat since 2015, except for the short period when Jitan Ram Manjhi was made the chief minister after the 2014 Lok Sabha elections.
Amidst all the high drama that unfolded, Union Minister Giriraj Singh dismissed the speculation as a ‘joke’ and said Nitish is the Chief Minister.
Bihar is the only state in the Hindi heartland where the BJP has never had its own chief minister. BJP sources said the party is keen to send Nitish, who has served as Chief Minister for 20 years, to the Rajya Sabha.
“Last time too, we performed better than JD(U) and still Nitish ji was made the CM. This time too, our numbers were greater, and still we followed the alliance dharma. He just turned 75 and has served as the CM for quite some time,” a senior BJP functionary said.
“His health is also a concern and it does impact overall governance. It is time for younger leaders to come forward and it is time for a BJP Chief Minister to head the state.”
Speculation was rife that Nitish Kumar’s son Nishant will formally join the JD(U) and may be inducted as a deputy chief minister in the new cabinet after the 18 March Rajya Sabha polls.
Senior JD(U) leader and Bihar minister Shrawan Kumar said Tuesday that Nishant will enter “active politics”. A number of other party leaders have made a similar demand.
All NDA MLAs have been asked to reach Patna on Thursday. According to sources, many alliance leaders have also raised governance issues in Bihar. Recently, both Jitan Ram Manjhi and Chirag Paswan spoke out against the prohibition policy urging the government for a review.
(Edited by Tony Rai)
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