BJP no longer 'big brother'? Nitish Kumar, Bihar allies become assertive

BJP's recent bypoll losses and JD(U)'s defeat in Jokihat might have brought about a change in the dynamics between NDA allies in Bihar

After Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP's) recent bypoll defeats across the country and its own loss in Jokihat, the Janata Dal (United), or JD(U), may be trying to project itself as more than just the saffron party's junior partner in Bihar with a senior party leader stating that Chief Minister Nitish Kumar was the face of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) in the state.  

"Nitish Kumar is the face of the NDA in Bihar, that is why he is the chief minister. JD(U) is the largest constituent of the coalition," party National Secretary Pavan Varma said after the JD(U) core committee meet in Patna on Sunday. (Read more here)   

Party spokesperson Ajay Alok also spoke on similar lines after the meet. "Nitish Kumar is the face of NDA alliance in Bihar," he said.

Last week, the Rashtriya Janata Dal wrested the Jokihat Assembly seat from the JD(U) and registered victory by a huge margin of over 41,000 votes. 

JD(U) appears to have changed the way it deals with the BJP as the party has recently attacked the Centre on several issues.

Even before the by-election debacle, in May, Nitish Kumar, who had supported demonetisation even when he was part of the Opposition, had questioned its benefits.     

"I was a supporter of demonetisation...but how many people benefited from it? Some powerful people shifted their cash from one place to another," he had said at a meeting with bank officials in Patna.   

On Friday, the party blamed rising prices of petrol and diesel for the Jokihat loss and asked the Centre to take measures to control and check the price hike, which it said was "directly impacting rural economy and common man". (Read more here)

Speaking to the media, JD(U) General Secretary K C Tyagi also said the BJP "should go for more coordination and meetings with its allies before taking any decision".  

Seat sharing takes centre stage

Several BJP allies in the state are now demanding an early decision regarding which party will contest how many seats in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, citing lack of coordination in the BJP-led NDA. (Read more here) 

Rashtriya Lok Samta Party (RLSP) chief and Union Minister of State for Human Resource Development Upendra Kushwaha recently said that all allies should sit together and finalise the strategy for the polls, including seat sharing, ahead of the 2019 general elections. 

The demand might spell trouble for the NDA in Bihar as the BJP appears to be keen to play the "big brother" role given its better-than-expected performance in the 2014 Lok Sabha polls. (Read more here)  

In April, senior BJP leader C P Thakur had said that the party would contest more seats than its allies in Bihar in the 2019 parliamentary polls. 

"The Bharatiya Janata Party will contest from majority of the 40 Lok Sabha seats in Bihar in the 2019 polls," Thakur, a BJP Rajya Sabha MP, had said.

However, the saffron party will not find it easy to convince its partners, who are also looking to contest on an increased number of seats. 

There are speculations in political circles in Bihar that the JD(U), which has only two Lok Sabha members, might press for a seat-sharing arrangement commensurate with its strength in the Bihar Assembly, where it has about 70 MLAs against nearly 50 of the BJP.

The BJP had bagged 22 out of the 40 Lok Sabha seats in the state in 2014 when the JD(U) had fought separately.

According to a report, the Lok Janshakti Party (LJP), which won six seats in the last elections, is trying to contest from no less than 10 seats. (Read more here)  

Meanwhile, the RLSP might press for over half a dozen seats. 

Fresh demands for 'special status'  

Last month, the chief minister had highlighted various issues impeding Bihar's development and implored the Centre for granting special category status (SCS) for the state.

Union Minister and LJP chief Ram Vilas Paswan has supported Nitish's demand and even raised the issue during a recent meet with BJP chief Amit Shah. (Read more here)  

"As far as special status to Bihar is concerned, we have been demanding for it. Bihar is a backward state, so the status must be granted to it. The government must listen to our pleas," he said after the meet.

The Union minister further said issues pertaining to the Scheduled Castes and Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act (SC/ST Act) and the ordinance regarding reservation in promotion were discussed. 

"The government has filed a review petition in court (on SC/ST Act). However, the court's closed, so we demanded ordinance for it. We have also demanded ordinance for reservation in promotion. He (Amit Shah) has promised to take decisions on the same," said Paswan.

With agency inputs