Nitish Kumar Becomes The CM of Bihar For The Fourth Time

Nitish Kumar of JDU has been sworn-in as the CM of Bihar for the fourth time today. Governor KN Tripathi administered the oath of office and secrecy.  

Kumar was invited to from the government after Jitan Manjhi resigned before the trust vote on Friday. Kumar told the media that his decision to step down from the post of CM last year following a massive loss in the general elections was a political mistake. "With folded hands, I apologize to the people of Bihar. Never again will I take such a step. I am ready to lead from the front."

The new cabinet comprises of 22 ministers: the two ministers who were sacked by the ex-CM Manjhi and 20 other who resigned following the difference between Manjhi and Kumar.   

The allies of JDU -RJD, Congress and the Left- have not joined the government at the present moment, but the option has been kept open with 12 vacant ministerial posts.

With Kumar becoming the CM again, the political crisis of the state seems to be subsided for the moment. For how long this political calm in the state goes on is to be seen.

Also Read:

Bihar Political Crisis: Jitan Ram Manjhi Resigns Before The Trust Vote, Alleges Receiving Death Threats

BJP accuses the JDU of Misusing Post Of Assembly Speaker

The BJP has alleged that the JDU is misusing the chair of Bihar Assembly Speaker to be in power and also play the role of the opposition party. Uday Narain Choudhary, the speaker of the Bihar assembly is said to be close to Nitish Kumar camp of the JDU.   

"The JDU is accusing the BJP of misusing the office of the Governor. But the JDU is misusing the office of the Speaker. The Speaker's post has its dignity. But the way the Speaker is behaving in the Assembly by addressing the Leader of Opposition Nand Kishore Yadav in a letter as BJP leader in the House. We oppose this, as when was it decided that Nand Kishore Yadav is not the Leader of Opposition," Shahnawaz Hussain of the BJP said.

Shahnawaz Hussain also raised his finger at the constitutional jurisdiction of the speaker of the house to bequeth the JDU with the powers of both the party in power and the party in opposition. "Does the Speaker have the right to give one party the power as well as opposition? The BJP is opposing this," he said.

Hussain also ridiculed the JDU, BJP's arch rivals in the state, for parading and proving his majority in the Rashtrapati Bhawan and not the in the Bihar assembly. "First, it should be proved on the floor as to who has the majority. Is it Nitish Kumar or Manjhi ji? And this can be decided neither in the road nor in the lawns of the Rashtrapati Bhavan."  

Yesterday the JDU suspended seven of its own MLAs ahead of the 20 February trial of strength for him on the floor of the Bihar Assembly.

The BJP has chosen to remain absent from the all-party meeting called by the speaker, and has alleged the Assembly Speaker of favoring Nitish Kumar. 

Also Read:

Jitan Manjhi Expelled From The Party, Nitish Claims To Have The Numbers

Nitish Kumar To Stake Claim To Form Government In Bihar, Manjhi Not Willing To Back Down 

Bihar Governor Invites Manjhi To Prove His Majority On 20 February

Governor of Bihar KN Tripathi has asked the Bihar CM Jitan Manjhi to prove his majority on the floor of the house on 20 February, immediately after the Governor addresses the joint session of the legislature.

A source close to the Raj Bhawan told the media, "Immediately after Governor's address of the joint session of Bihar Legislature on the opening day of Budget session on February 20, Manjhi will have to prove majority in the Legislative Assembly." However, it is to be seen whether the governor has accepted CM Manjhi's request for a secret ballot or not.   

Governor's directive to Manjhi has come after Nitish Kumar along with Lalu Yadav and Mulayam Singh Yadav paraded 130 MLAs at the President's residence yesterday.

In a major development, the High Court of Patna put a stay on Nitish's election as the leader of the legislature party of JDU.

JDU is accusing the BJP of buying time so that they can use foul means to horse trade the JDU MLAs. 

Also Read:

Jitan Manjhi Expelled From The Party, Nitish Claims To Have The Numbers

Nitish Kumar To Stake Claim To Form Government In Bihar, Manjhi Not Willing To Back Down

Nitish Kumar To Stake Claim To Form Government In Bihar, Manjhi Not Willing To Back Down

After Nitish Kumar was elected the leader of the JDU legislature party yesterday, he is expected to stake his claim to form the new government in Bihar. The current CM of Bihar Jitan Manjhiis not willing to step down to make way for the ex-CM.

Manjhi wrote a letter to the Governor KN Tripathi yesterday, requesting him to not to accept any proposition put forward by the JDU legislature party meeting headed by Sharad Yadav. In his letter he has pointed out that it is the Chief Minister's prerogative to call for the meeting of the party legislators. Manjhi has also recommended that 15 ministers should be removed from their posts with immediate effects.

In the meanwhile, 20 ministers have sent their resignation letters to the Governor to show their support to Kumar.

Bihar seems to be going towards a political crisis as the state cabinet has authorized Manjhi to recommend the dissolution of the state assembly, and the legislature party of the JDU has decided to remove Manjhi from the post of the leader of the legislature party.

In the current political scenario, 97 of the 111 MLAs of the party have elected Nitish Kumar the leader of the legislature party and recommended the removal Manjhi, who was handpicked by Nitish Kumar himself for the post of CM following JDU's devastating performance in the general elections nine months back.

Whatever the outcome of this political dilemma be in Bihar, the state is quite definitely headed for a constitutional crisis; the Governor must be feeling the heat about whether to deploy the state cabinet's recommendation to dissolve the house or let the new legislature party headed by Kumar to try and form a new government in the state that is going for elections in six months’ time.  

Also Read:

Jitan Manjhi Not Willing To Step Down From CM's Chair, JDU Top-brass Vexed

Kejriwal Set To Get Majority In Delhi: Exit Polls

Jitan Manjhi Not Willing To Step Down From CM's Chair, JDU Top-brass Vexed

The noise of dissent in the JDU, the party in power in Bihar, is getting louder every day. More party leaders are now supporting CM Jitan Manjhi's decision of not stepping down from his post.

The party President Sharad Yadav has called for a meeting of JDU's joint legislature party on 7 February, but Manjhi has refused to attend the meeting saying that it is the CM's prerogative to call for such a meeting. The meeting was supposed to convince Manjhi to make way for the former CM Nitish Kumar to be reinstated.  

Parliamentary affairs minister Shrawan Kumar has told the media, “A meeting of JDU legislature party has been called on February 7 on the direction of party president Sharad Yadav.” when asked about the motive of the meeting he said that the meeting will be convened to look into the latest political situation of the state, including the leadership issue, besides other matters of top priority.  

Sharad Yadav met Kumar two times on Thursday, and then went down to meet the CM at his official residence; Yadav spent around an hour or so with Manjhi. It is reportedly said that that Yadav tried to convince Manjhi to step down so that Nitish can be reinstated; Manjhi is said to have refused to resign.     

The sources are saying that the JDU top-brass offered various perks to Manjhi such as including one the family members in the new cabinet, a ticket for his son in the coming assembly elections, an important post for himself in the party organization, but he refused all the propositions.

Sharad Yadav, however, is not willing to accept that any such meeting happened. He emphasizes that the meetings were a part of the preparatory work for the 15 February meeting of the party cadre at the Gandhi Maidan. “I went to Nitish Kumar’s residence to attend a training program of the JDU minority cell. I have already said that Manjhi’s removal is not on the party’s agenda,” he said.

A source of the JDU has said that the SP chief Mulayam Singh Yadav, who is taking care of the merger of the Janata Parivar,  called Nitish and told him to take over the reins in Bihar and start the preparations for the coming assemble elections.

Sharad Yadav said that he was ignorant of Mulayam talking to Nitish over phone.

The Nitish Kumar camp is of the opinion that Kumar should be reinstated before the commencement of the budget session beginning from 20 February.  

Also Read:

Delhi: Christian Community Protests Against Attack on Churches, Dozens Of Protesters Detained

Anil Goswami Submits His Resignation In The Wake Of His Alleged Attempt In Stalling The Arrest Of Matan Sinh

Nitish Wants To Be The Next CM of Bihar

JDU commander-in-chief and party's face in the statehood of Bihar Nitish Kumar is supposed to be the unanimous choice to be the same for the proposed Janata Parivar in the coming Bihar assembly elections.

"Lalu Prasad, Mulayam Singh and Sharad Yadav will be in the role of guardians at the national-level. Nitish, who has a fabulous record as the state chief minister and resigned from the post in May owning moral responsibility of his party's defeat at the Lok Sabha polls, is best suited to lead the Parivar against the BJP in the run-up to the Assembly polls," a top leaded of the would be Parivar said. 

The Janata Parivar is going to be a merger of five different parties namely: JD(U), RJD, SP, INLD, and JD(S). Giving air to the proposed merger, the parties would perform a mahadharna at Sansad Marg in New Delhi against the alleged failure of the Modi government. 

Nitish gave a hint about his desire to become the Chief Minister of the state again under the banner of the Janata Parivar while he was addressing his Sampark Yatra at Madhepura. He spoke, "If I succeed in winning the people's trust in the Assembly polls, I shall shoulder the responsibility of becoming the chief minister again." 

The significance of the Janata Parivar is going to be the most prominent one in Bihar as the assemble elections, taking place in the state in October-November 2015, would see the two archrivals - Lanu and Nitish- coming together and, in their own words, fight the same enemy. 

The old Janata Parivar members already have gone through two rounds of meeting, and have authorized Mulayam Singh Yadav to lead the mission of bringing the factions together under one roof.

Also Read:

BJP Set To Get A Majority In Jharkhand, Hung Assembly In J&K: Exit Poll

Hindu Mahasabha Tells The Government to Install Nathuram Godse's Statues In Different Places

Bihar CM Wants The Reservation Limit To Be Raised To 80%

Bihar Chief Minister, Jeetan Ram Manjhi, has called for the limit of the reservation for SC/STs, OBCs, and other backward section to be raised to 80% from the existing 49.5%.

He was addressing a public meeting during his civic reception at Banshidhar secondary school under Adapur block in Bihar’s east Champaran district. He said, "“The reservation (in government jobs and educational institutions) be hiked to 80 per cent to be in sync with the population benefiting from the incentive.”

Jeeten Ram Manjhi

He argued that the number of SC/SC and OBS people is around 80 per cent of the total population of the state, therefore the the reservation percentage should also fall in accordance with the same.

Hailing himself from a Mahadalit Mushar caste, Manjhi spoke that he will leave no stone unturned in building a consensus on the issue and will also try to channelize all the like-minded parties towards achieving this goal. And if a need be, will not shy away from launching an agitation for the bar of reservation to be raised drastically high.

Manjhi, 70, is not new to making controversial statements; his statements on inter-caste marriages, calling the upper caste people outsiders in the state, and asking the dalits to increase their population to avail benefits of government schemes created lots of furor. 

Also read:

Government Has Chalked An Action Plan To Do Away With The 17% Shortage Of Officers In The Armed Forces

Government Of India Scraps Section 309 Of The IPC: Attempt To Suicide Is No criminal Offence Anymore

Old Laptop Batteries Can Light Your Homes For One Year