3 months ago
1
A remark circulating online encapsulates the governmental developments successful Bihar perfectly – “it took a planetary warfare for a authorities alteration successful Iran to effect 1 successful Bihar.”
Nitish Kumar, the State’s longest serving main minister, is going to the Rajya Sabha, vacating the station for National Democratic Alliance ally, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which yet gets to clasp the apical spot.
The narration betwixt the Janata Dal(U) and the BJP done the years — from the clip erstwhile the JD(U) was Samata Party to present — has been afloat of twists and turns, with 1 changeless factor: Nitish Kumar arsenic the main ministerial face.
This constancy of the alliance’s face, since 2000, erstwhile the Samata Party got less seats than the BJP, but saw Mr. Kumar being projected arsenic main curate for a little play of 7 days successful a abbreviated lived claim, to 2025, when, again, the BJP won much seats than the JD(U), was a merchandise of the governmental tract of Bihar but besides the representation and persona of Mr. Kumar.
Nitish Kumar’s peculiar spot successful Bihar
Mr. Kumar managed to carve retired a beardown basal from the larger Mandal umbrella of Extremely Backward Classes (EBC), Mahadalits, immoderate sections of the Pasmanda oregon backward Muslims, and women voters. It was a reinterpretation of societal justness authorities and the seizure of determination sub nationalism of Bihari pride, of a renewal of the State aft the “Jungle Raj” of the RJD years that made him invaluable to the BJP arsenic well, which was considered a enactment of mostly precocious caste Hindu communities.
With the advent of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, hailing arsenic helium does from a backward community, whitethorn person modified immoderate of that representation for the BJP successful Bihar, but arsenic the enactment discovered successful 2015, the caste arithmetic did not adhd up for it successful the lack of Mr. Kumar.
That is possibly why, successful each Assembly canvass since, adjacent if the JD(U) won less seats than the BJP, Mr. Kumar would beryllium the main ministerial face. Even successful 2025, with reports of Mr. Kumar’s sick wellness doing the rounds, the BJP had insisted that helium would beryllium the main minister.
When concern changed aft Bihar Assembly elections
It is simply a antithetic substance that aft the results were out. BJP’s elder leaders sent steadfast messages that a succession program successful the JD(U) was needed to beryllium enactment successful place, and the main minister’s presumption should beryllium ceded to the BJP.
Mr. Kumar’s reported sick wellness had led to questions being raised implicit succession plans successful the party, with his lad Nishant Kumar present being groomed to participate the JD(U). There are apprehensions that a Nitish-less JD(U) successful Bihar volition beryllium similar a swagger little inferior spouse of the BJP oregon whitethorn adjacent suffer its crushed successful the State.
But what it demonstrates much starkly is the extremity of an epoch successful Bihar politics, wherever the heirs of Ram Manohar Lohia and Jayprakash Narayan - Mr. Kumar and RJD supremo Lalu Prasad held sway. The procreation that participated successful the anti-Emergency question and ushered successful the heydays of socialist authorities is making its last bows from the stage.
What we are apt to spot successful Bihar is different churning.
Bihar arsenic a State has ever been astatine the forefront of presaging governmental forces that aboriginal clasp sway successful the remainder of the country, from anti-Congressism successful the 1960s and 1970s to Mandal and post-Mandal politics, to the cultivation of a caller women’s ballot bank, and arsenic it sees the exit of Nitish Kumar arsenic main minister, it volition beryllium absorbing to spot what and who takes his place.
