No Stopping Nitish Kumar
Editor-in-Chief of indiacommentary.com. Current Affairs analyst and political commentator.
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By Sunil Garodia
First publised on 2024-02-13 15:13:25
About the Author
Editor-in-Chief of indiacommentary.com. Current Affairs analyst and political commentator.
View all posts by this Author
Despite RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav saying in the aftermath of the nth palti by Nitish Kumar that Bihar 'mein abhi khela baki hai', it was clear that after JD(U) moved to the NDA and Jitan Ram Majhi also decided to lend a helping hand, there was little the rising star of Bihar politics could do to stop them. This was proved when Nitish Kumar won the floor test in the state assembly by 129-0 as the entire opposition walked out. In the process, the RJD also lost three MLAs who voted for the NDA alliance government.
The debate preceding the vote was marked by several stinging comments from both sides. When Nitish Kumar said that mann nahin lag raha tha (in the RJD alliance), Tejashwi was quick to respond whether the RJD was there for entertainment purpose. Tejashwi also pointedly asked that could Prime Minister Modi, handing out Modi ki guarantees, now guarantee that Nitish Kumar will not change colours once again. The BJP charged the RJD of continuously insulting Nitish Kumar.
But one thing is clear though - with the realignment in Bihar politics, Tejashwi Yadav and RJD are on the back foot. Despite his bravado, RJD had 79 MLAs compared to 78 of the BJP. That means that voters are divided. After the realignment, and considering the caste factor, the yadav votes might remain with RJD but the upper caste will reamin with the BJP and JD(U) and other small party votes will now move to the NDA. Then the biggest factor is the consolidation of Hindu votes after the Ram Mandir consecration. That might play a big part in the 2024 elections in Bihar. It will be interesting to watch whether communities still vote along caste lines or are swayed by the Ram Mandir. It is because Bihar's politics is overwhelmingly caste-based that the BJP has left nothing to chance and brought Nitish Kumar back in the fold. It will also be interesting to watch if people still have faith in him or will dump him for being a snollygoster.
