After days of speculation that Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar may go to the Rajya Sabha and the State would have a new Chief Minister from the BJP and two deputy chief ministers from Mr. Kumar’s party, the JD(U), his (Mr. Kumar) party leaders on Friday dismissed such rumour and asserted that he would “remain the Chief Minister for full term and not going anywhere”.
On March 2, in an informal chat with a group of media persons in his chamber in the Assembly, Mr. Kumar said he had been to the Lok Sabha and a member of the Assembly and Council but never to the Rajya Sabha and would like to go there someday. Since then, the buzz in Bihar political circle has been that Mr. Kumar would be moved from Bihar as Chief Minister and might be named as the next Vice-President of India.
However, the very next day, Mr. Kumar clarified to media persons that he had no “personal interest” in going to the Upper House as people have mandated him to power in Bihar and he had lot of works to do in the State.
‘Very clever politician’
Senior Opposition leader, Rashtriya Janata Dal’s (RJD) Shivanand Tiwari said, “Nitish Kumar is a very clever politician… by saying he has no personal interest in going to the Rajya Sabha, he still has opened the passage of going there, if his party or the NDA [National Democratic Alliance] wants it. But my suggestion to Mr. Kumar will be, if he goes to the Upper House, he should go on his party’s quota and not through the BJP, as only then, he could speak the voice of his conscience there”.
RJD leader and former Chief Minister Rabri Devi observed, “it will be good if Mr. Kumar opts for the Rajya Sabha”, while her younger son and Leader of Opposition in the Assembly Tejashwi Yadav remarked, “Mr. Kumar is tired and should retire now”.
On Friday, Minister Sanjay Jha, who is close aide of Mr. Kumar tweeted, “I’m intrigued at the rumor that Hon CM Shri @Nitish Kumar is contemplating going to Rajya Sabha! This is mischievous, and far from truth. Shri Kumar has people’s mandate to serve Bihar, and will continue to do so for the full term as chief minister. He is not going anywhere!”.
In another tweet, he stated, “Shri Nitish Kumar was the face of the NDA in 2020 Bihar assembly elections, and people voted this alliance to power. His unwavering commitment to serve people & ability to transform # Bihar are sacrosanct. I urge all to desist from such propaganda, which shall yield little”.
Upendra Kushwaha’S tweet
Similarly, Chairman of the JD(U) Parliamentary Board Upendra Kushwaha too took to Twitter to brush aside the idea of Mr. Kumar moving to the Upper House of Parliament. “Mr. Kumar has the mandate to serve the people of Bihar for the next five years and he is going nowhere. He is and will remain the Chief Minister”, tweeted Mr. Kushwaha in Hindi.
Mr Tiwari, though, said, “it is people who are enjoying power because of Nitish Kumar and surrounded him do not want him to go anywhere”.
Speaking to The Hindu, some NDA leaders said Mr. Kumar had been sounded by top BJP leadership to move out from Bihar. “He might have floated an idea to the BJP leadership that he could go to the Rajya Sabha”, a senior State BJP leader stated. “Let’s see what happens. But I think it will happen soon”, he added.
BJP MLA Vinay Bihari had said that Mr. Kumar has “lost the charisma he had during his first term as Chief Minister and that’s why the JD(U) tally in the last Assembly poll had shrunk [to 43]”.
If Mr. Kumar goes to the Rajya Sabha, he would be joining the league of two veteran leaders from Bihar — Lalu Prasad and Sushil Kumar Modi — who have been members of both the Houses of Parliament and State legislature.
