The day that Bihar CM Nitish Kumar snubbed a meeting of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s NITI Aayog governing council, the JD(U) set the BJP on notice for their increasingly contentious partnership.
Significantly, Nitish Kumar has been ignoring the BJP for some months now. The Nitish Aayog meeting was the fourth meeting scheduled by the Union government since July 17 that the JD(U) chairman had skipped.
The JD(U) has invited a parliamentary meeting of all its MPs, MLAs, and MLCs for Tuesday amid speculation of a confrontation with its coalition partner, the BJP. However, when informed about the meeting, senior JD(U) leader KC Tyagi stated that there isn’t much to read into it. “On Tuesday, there will be a party parliamentary meeting in which all MPs, MLAs, and MLCs will participate.” This is a routine meeting. Please limit your reading,” Tyagi said.
Last month, on July 17, Nitish Kumar did not attend a meeting of all chief ministers called by Union Minister of Home Affairs Amit Shah.
After that, he was invited to the farewell banquet hosted by PM Modi for outgoing President Ram Nath Kovind on July 22, but he again stayed away.
RCP Singh, a former Union Minister and JD(U) national president, resigned from the party on Saturday after the party leadership demanded an answer for the corruption charges levelled against him.
RCP Singh is well-liked by BJP leaders in Bihar’s political circles, but his relationship with Nitish Kumar has deteriorated in recent months. RCP Singh became a minister at the Centre without Kumar’s assent when the Union cabinet was extended last year.
The JD(U) said on Sunday that it will not rejoin the Union Council of Ministers, sparking rumours of a new clash between the two partners. According to JD(U) national president Rajiv Ranjan Singh alias Lalan, the party is unwilling to have a representation in the Union Council of Ministers. “We had resolved not to join the government at the Centre after the Lok Sabha elections in 2019. We continue to hold that position,” he stated at a press conference in Patna.
RCP Singh’s friendship with BJP officials is well known in Bihar’s political circles. His relationship with Nitish Kumar, on the other hand, has deteriorated in recent months. When the Union cabinet was extended last year, RCP Singh became a minister without the approval of Nitish Kumar.
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