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PremiumBihar politics Highlights: JD(U) chief Nitish Kumar took oath as the Bihar Chief Minister for the record 9th time on Sunday at Raj Bhawan in Patna. With Nitish Kumar, 8 other ministers took oath as the ministers of Bihar government including BJP leaders Samrat Choudhary and Vijay Sinha, who are going to be deputy chief ministers in the government.
Nitish Kumar has submitted his resignation and severed ties with Mahagathbandhan in Bihar today i.e. on 28 January. CM and JD(U) chief Nitish Kumar exit the 28-party Opposition bloc formed to take on the BJP-led Central government. Earlier, Bhartiya Janata Party also held a meeting with its MLAs and MPs in Patna today to chalk out the strategy over the latest political situation in the state. The ruling JD(U)-RJD-Congress coalition in Bihar collapsed as Kumar crossed over to the NDA again, the alliance he parted his ways in 2022 to form the 'mahagathbandhan'.
JD(U) on Sunday blamed Congress for stealing the leadership of Opposition INDIA bloc. The senior leader of the party KC Tyagi said that the West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee was made to announce Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge as the prime ministerial face of the Opposition alliance.
"Congress wanted to steal the leadership of the INDIA alliance. In the meeting that took place on December 19, through a conspiracy, to get the leadership of INDIA alliance, Mallikarjun Kharge's name was proposed (as PM face)…earlier, in the meeting that took place in Mumbai, it was unanimously decided that without any PM face, INDIA alliance will work," Tyagi said.
Bihar politics LIVE: Key highlights of today
1. Earlier in the day, JD(U) supremo Nitish Kumar submitted his resignation to Bihar Governor Rajendra Arlekar as he ended his alliance with the RJD in the state
2. The move came amid a rift in the Opposition INDIA bloc over the seat-sharing arrangements
3. Nitish Kumar was also concerned about his party's future as it was reported that several senior leaders openly called for going back to the NDA
4. Nitish Kumar will take the oath as Bihar Chief Minister for record 9th time at 5:00 PM today in Patna
5. Two senior BJP leaders are expected to take oath as the deputy chief ministers to the state.
6. Nitish Kumar takes oath as Bihar CM with two deputy chief ministers Samrat Choudhary, Vijay Sinha.
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Bihar politics LIVE: Congress MP Shashi Tharoor Sunday said there could not be a "one-size-fits-all formula" for a country like India which has different political realities and negotiations on seat-sharing for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections between INDIA bloc allies will be taking place on a "state-by-state basis."
He also claimed that he "does not see many prospects" for the ruling BJP-led NDA regime to "increase their vote share" in the big-stakes battle just three months away.
His remarks came on a day when JD(U) President and Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, who was at the forefront of the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance, a coalition of 28 political parties formed seven months ago, joined back the BJP-led NDA regime just ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
Speaking with ANI during a visit to Hyderabad, the Congress leader said, "It is understood that negotiations will be taking place on a state-by-state basis. You could not have a one-size-fits-all formula for the States. Our country is very complicated. With different political realities in different states".
Bihar politics LIVE: Samrat Choudhary, and Vijay Sinha took oath as Deputy Chief Ministers.
Others who took oath are BJP’s Prem Kumar, JD(U) leaders Vijay Kumar Chaudhary, Vijendra Yadav and Shravan Kumar, Hindustan Awam Morcha leader Santosh Kumar Suman, and Independent MLA Sumit Kumar Singh.
Bihar politics LIVE: Aam Aadmi Party national convenor Arvind Kejriwal announced on Sunday that the party will contest alone on all 90 seats in the Haryana assembly elections. "For the upcoming Lok Sabha elections we will contest elections together with the INDIA alliance but for the assembly elections, we will contest alone on all 90 seats of Haryana by itself," Kejriwal said. This comes amid Janata Dal (United) chief Nitish Kumar severed ties with the grand alliance in Bihar to rejoin the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA).
Earlier, Punjab Chief Minister and AAP leader Bhagwant Mann said there will be no alliance with Congress for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections in the state.
Former Chhattisgarh Chief Minister and Congress leader Bhupesh Baghel took a dig at Janata Dal (United) chief Nitish Kumar after his exit from INDIA bloc to realign with BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA). "Nitish Kumar's credibility has ended. How many times will he change the alliance and how many times will he give excuses?" Baghel said while speaking to ANI on Nitish Kumar's recent political manoeuvre.
He further asserted that Nitish Kumar's exit will not affect the opposition coalition, the INDIA bloc adding that the people are fed up with the JDU chief for his actions. "People are fed up with him because he keeps changing parties and alliances," the former CM said. "This step which Nitish Kumar has taken is the last in his political career. It won't affect the INDIA alliance, we will stand even strongly," he added.
Bihar politics LIVE: "Congress has broken their own family. The way they insulted Nitish Kumar, who would want to stay with them in alliance. Nitish Kumar was the person who tried to bring everyone together on one platform..." Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav said.
Bihar politics LIVE: "...He used to say that he would die but not join BJP...You should ask Samrat Choudhary if he would burn his 'pagari' or fulfil his promise...INDIA alliance will defeat the NDA..." RJD MLA Bhai Virendra said.
Bihar politics LIVE: "I express my happiness on the new experiment of Bihar government. An atmosphere of uncertainty that was prevailing has come to an end. We have earlier also worked with the BJP...We have had a good experience working with them..." JD(U) leader KC Tyagi said.
"The kind of work that has been done by Central govt over the 10 years under the leadership of PM Modi, no opposition party can take on us...if Nitish Kumar has come to his census and if he wants to be with us to fulfil PM Modi's dream of taking the nation forward, it is a good thing...from the very first day the INDI alliance was formed, we have been saying there is no importance of it. Even if nobody leaves that alliance and they work with their whole strength still they can't survive in front of the leadership of PM Modi. We want the entire INDI alliance to fight against PM Modi, we also want to see how strong they are," BJP MLA Agnimitra Paul said.
IBihar politics LIVE: In the Bihar Assembly of 243, the RJD has 79 MLAs; followed by the BJP's 78; the JD(U)'s 45' the Congress's 19, the CPI (M-L)'s 12, two each of the CPI(M) and CPI, the Hindustani Awam Morcha (Secular)'s four seats, and the AIMIM's one, plus one Independent legislator.
Bihar politics LIVE: "Bihar mein Baahar aa gaya. Now there will be development in Bihar, both the central government and the state government will work together for the development of the state. I congratulate Nitish Kumar. NDA will win all 40 Lok Sabha seats...'' Pashupati Kumar Paras said.
Bihar politics LIVE: "Khela toh ho gaya, ab kya khela hoga...The development of Bihar had stopped during their government...Now Bihar will develop...'' Union Minister Pashupati Kumar Paras said.
Bihar politics LIVE: "It is clearly disappointing for us because he is a tall leader of India. But it is a democracy & everyone has the right to feel, but the rest of the INDIA family stays intact. We will not just work as an organisation but as India's family...Why should there be a problem if one ally has a difference of opinion?..." NCP leader Supriya Sule said.
Bihar politics LIVE: "I thank our party leadership, especially PM Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister and National President, for showing confidence in me...The NDA government will establish good governance and there will be development," deputy chief minister Vijay Kumar Sinha said.
While speaking on his predecessor and RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav, Sinha said, "He got a good opportunity to play but he could not play and failed in that game..."
Bihar politics LIVE: "It is a matter of happiness that Bihar has now got the NDA government...Looking at the current situation, I can say that NDA will win all 40 seats of Bihar," Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) president Chirag Paswan said.
Bihar politics LIVE: "We had said that INDI alliance is an unholy, unscientific alliance and it will not work. 'Anaya Yatra', 'Bharat Todo Yatra' and the INDI Alliance have failed conceptually. INDI alliance formed to protect family and properties and is a group of corrupt people and promotes appeasement..." BJP chief JP Nadda said.
Bihar politics LIVE: "We work for the development and progress of Bihar. We will keep doing the same, nothing else. Tejashwi was not doing anything. Now I am back where I was before (in NDA) and now there is no question of going anywhere," Nitish Kumar added.
Bihar politics LIVE: “We will win all 40 Lok Sabha seats in Bihar. In 2020 we won the elections and defeated Lalu Yadav's family and will do the same in future also," said new deputy chief minister Samrat Choudhary
Bihar politics LIVE: "We will stay together. 8 leaders took oath as ministers today and the rest will be inducted soon. Samrat Choudhary and Vijay Sinha have been appointed as Deputy Chief Ministers..." Bihar CM Nitish Kumar said.
Bihar politics LIVE: " ...Tejashwi Yadav was conspiring to become CM, that whole conspiracy was exposed. Also, want to thank PM Modi because he did not let Bihar become Bengal...we have seen RJD's tenure from 1999-2005, not a single person used to feel safe and law & order situation was very bad..." Bihar BJP president Sanjay Jaiswal said.
“The NDA government formed in Bihar will leave no stone unturned for the development of the state and to fulfill the aspirations of its people. @NitishKumar I congratulate ji as Chief Minister and Samrat Chaudhary ji and Vijay Sinha ji on taking oath as Deputy Chief Ministers. I am confident that this team will serve my family members of the state with full dedication. @samrat4bjp @VijayKrSinhaBih," PM Modi said.
Bihar politics LIVE: Three from BJP – Samrat Choudhary, Vijay Kumar Sinha, Prem Kumar. Three from JDU – Vijay Kumar Choudhary, Bijendra Prasad Yadav, Shrawon Kumar and Hindustani Awam Morcha (Secular) President Santosh Kumar Suman and independent MLA Sumit Kumar Singh took oath as ministers.
Bihar politics LIVE: "...Whenever we get a responsibility we try to fulfil it with all honesty...," says JDU's Vijay Kumar Chaudhary after taking oath as a minister in the new Nitish Kumar-led government.
Bihar politics LIVE: That's the conclusion of oath-taking ceremony, where Nitish Kumar took oath as the Bihar Chief Minister for the 9th time with 8 more ministers.
Bihar politics LIVE: Independent Sumit Kumar Singh is one of the youngest MLA to take oath as the minister in Bihar government. He is known for his close ties with Nitish Kumar and was also part of previous Mahagathbandhan government in the state.
Bihar politics LIVE: Hindustani Awam Morcha (S) chief Santosh Kumar Suman takes oath as a minister in Bihar government. Suman's party has maintained its loyal voter base in the state, forcing the bigger parties to depend on HAM's support.
Bihar politics LIVE: JD(U) leader Shravan Kumar, who served as the rural development minister in the previous Mahagathbandhan government. He made some headlines last year when he pitched for Nitish Kumar as the Prime Minister candidate of the Opposition INDIA bloc.
Bihar politics LIVE: BJP leader Dr Prem Kumar takes oath as minister in Bihar government. Another very senior leader from the state as he represents the politically significant Gaya constituency of the state.
Bihar politics LIVE: JD(U) leader Vijendra Prasad Yadav takes oath as the minister in Bihar government. Yadav has been one of the oldest leader in the state and have been elected to the assembly for 8 terms.
Bihar politics LIVE: BJP leader Vijay Kumar Sinha is taking the oath as the deputy chief minister in Bihar government. Sinha is a proper RSS man in the BJP and known for his strengths within the organisational structure of the party.
Bihar politics LIVE: BJP leader Samrat Choudhary is taking oath as the deputy CM of Bihar. The leader comes from a significant community and draws considerable influence within the Kurmi-Kushwaha equation in the state.
Bihar politics LIVE: JD(U) supremo Nitish Kumar takes oath as the Bihar Chief Minister for record 9th time at Raj Bhawan in Patna. Earlier, in the day he ended his alliance with the RJD and went back to BJP-led NDA
Bihar politics LIVE: Bihar's acting chief minister Nitish Kumar arrived at Raj Bhawan for the oath-taking ceremony. BJP chief JP Nadda, and the potential deputy chief minister candidates, Samrat Choudhary and Vijay Sinha are already at the Raj Bhawan and the ceremony is expected to begin soon.
Bihar politics LIVE: BJP leaders Samrat Choudhary and Vijay Sinha, who are expected to take oath as the deputy chief ministers of the state arrived at Raj Bhawan for the oath-taking ceremony of the new NDA government in Bihar.
Bihar politics LIVE: Ahead of the oath-taking ceremony in Bihar, BJP chief JP Nadda reached Patna and met Governor Rajendra Arlekar at Raj Bhawan. Earlier today, Nitish Kumar submitted his resignation to the Governor and then staked claim to form the government with BJP-led NDA in the state.
Bihar politics LIVE: Hours after Nitish Kumar resigned from his position as chief minister and decided to go back to BJP-led NDA, former deputy CM Tejashwi Yadav gave his first reaction and said "Khela abhi baki hai, we stand with the public."
Nitish Kumar is set to take oath as the Bihar Chief Minister for the record 9th time on Sunday and is expected to have two deputy CMs from BJP.
Bihar politics LIVE: In an unexpected turn of events, Janata Dal (United) chief Nitish Kumar quit as the Bihar Chief Minister on Sunday. He is now all set to form the state government in alliance with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and its National Democratic Alliance (NDA) partners.
Kumar severed ties with Lalu Prasad Yadav's Rashtriya Janta Dal (RJD) on Sunday. He had formed the government in Bihar in alliance with the RJD and other Left parties in 2022. Read More
Bihar politics LIVE: "If you look back at my remarks over the past one year, then you would find out that I was the only person who on camera said that Nitish Kumar can change his side anytime. People already know that Nitish Kumar is a 'palturam' and 'sardar of palturams'. However, today's incident has shown that all politicians in Bihar are also 'palturam'," Prashant Kishor said.
"In the present Bihar picture, there are two sides. On one hand, Nitish Kumar is the face, supported by the BJP. On the other, there is RJD and the other parties. Bihar assembly election will not take place in this formation. Before the next Bihar election, there will be many dramatic developments in Bihar. Within six months after the Lok Sabha election, you will see those developments," Prashant Kishor said
"They got scared after my prediction and already left Mahgathbandhan. My next prediction is Nitish Kumar's party won't get more than 20 seats in the state election. Please write it down. If JD(U) gets more than 20 seats in the state, I will take retirement," he added.
Bihar politics LIVE: "Nitish Kumar is known for his political somersaults at regular intervals. It is unfortunate that he has decided to quit the opposition grouping INDIA and is likely to join the NDA. The people will give a befitting reply to such political opportunism," Trinamool Congress MP Sougata Roy said.
Bihar politics LIVE: “He (Tejashwi Yadav) only thought about his family and party and kept the youth of Bihar unemployed...The oath ceremony will be held today at 5 pm," BJP leader Nitin Navin said.
Bihar politics LIVE: Ahead of the oath-taking ceremony at 5:00 PM, celebrations are on outside BJP office in Patna. As per the reports, two BJP leaders will take oath as deputy chief ministers along with Nitish Kumar, who will become Bihar CM for the record 9th time.
Bihar politics LIVE: "KC Tyagi is my elder brother. Tell him that Nitish Kumar has switched sides once again and see how he comes up with new dialogues. He is a good scriptwriter and writes good dialogues..." Congress leader Pawan Khera said.
KC Tyagi had earlier blamed Congress for stealing the leadership of INDIA bloc. "Congress wanted to steal the leadership of the INDIA alliance. In the meeting that took place on December 19, through a conspiracy, to get the leadership of INDIA alliance, Mallikarjun Kharge's name was proposed (as PM face)…earlier, in the meeting that took place in Mumbai, it was unanimously decided that without any PM face, INDIA alliance will work," the senior leader said.
Bihar politics LIVE: "We welcome Nitish Kumar, and also congratulate the people of Bihar... The law and order situation in Bihar had deteriorated under the 'mahagathbandhan' government and 'jungle raj 2.0' could be seen... The situation that changed in Bihar was because of miscommunication and misunderstanding... Better late than never, things have been sorted out..." Rashtriya Lok Janshakti Party MP Prince Raj said.
Bihar politics LIVE: BJP national president JP Nadda is expected to attend the oath-taking ceremony of Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, who resigned on Sunday to come back in the NDA alliance.
"I am going there (Patna) to attend the oath-taking ceremony. We are happy that an NDA government would be formed again in Bihar. I have said this before that I disagree with Nitish Kumar over his policies and it would continue if we continue to work over his policies," Lok Janshakti Party leader told PTI.
On Nitish Kumar joining NDA, Congress MP Jairam Ramesh says, "This will not affect the INDIA alliance. The people of Bihar will give the right answer to Nitish Kumar and those who are sitting in Delhi in the 2024 elections. I have not seen any opportunistic leader like him. He can give tough competition to Chameleon. This entire drama has been created by PM- 'Muhurat Mantri'. He is baffled by the success of Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra..."
Describing Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's volte-face as "political opportunism", BJP MP from West Bengal Dilip Ghosh on Sunday said there should be an end to it.
Ghosh, the former president of West Bengal BJP, was speaking to reporters after Kumar dumped the RJD and Congress, and joined hands with the BJP to form a new government in the state.
"A politician usually takes oath as CM once during a five-year term. But Nitish Kumar is such a politician, who takes oath at least twice or thrice during a five-year term, and that too from different camps each time," he said. (PTI)
DMK leader Saravanan Annadurai told PTI that Nitish Kumar was not a major stakeholder in the INDIA alliance. He added, “Nitish Kumar was one of the constituents of the INDIA alliance, but he was not a major stakeholder. Probably, he was a big figure in terms of personality but after what he has done now, his personality has... I don't know how the people of Bihar will accept it that he has joined the BJP."
