Former chief minister and Hindustani Awam Morcha (Secular) (HAM(S)) leader Jitan Ram Manjhi’s meeting with Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Tuesday night has fuelled speculation in poll-bound Bihar after Mr. Manjhi, on Wednesday, said that the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) being the big brother in the mahagathbandhan (grand alliance) ought to form a coordination committee by March 30 as otherwise he would “not be with the mahagathbandhan and mull forming a greater alliance with other parties”.
“The coordination committee in grand alliance must be formed by March 30 as other three alliance partners Congress, Rashtriya Lok Samata Party and Vikashil Insaan Party too have supported this,” Mr. Manjhi said, while addressing mediapersons in Patna.
“If it is not done HAM (S) will not move even a single step ahead in grand alliance and mull over formation of a greater alliance with other parties,” he cautioned. Mr. Manjhi has been demanding the creation of a coordination committee in the grand alliance since October 2019.
Also read: Jitan Ram Manjhi says party will go it alone in 2020 election
“When four partners demand the formation of a coordination committee why does the RJD alone not favour this,” asked Mr. Manjhi. “If our demand is not met, we — all the four allies and some other parties like CPI and Pappu Yadav’s Jan Adhikar Party (Loktantrik) — would form a greater alliance in the State” he declared. “I’ll also go to Delhi after this coronavirus scare and speak to BSP chief Mayawati and CPI-ML to include them in the greater alliance,” added Mr. Manjhi.
However, when asked about his meeting with Mr. Kumar on Tuesday, Mr. Manjhi said, “one should not read too much into the meeting”. “I’d gone to meet Nitish Kumar to invite him for the inauguration of a polytechnic institution for Scheduled Caste students in my village Mahkar in Gaya district, and to [ask that government] provide me special security which was withdrawn recently,” he asserted. “We’ll decide our future course after party’s rally in Patna on May 10,” the HAM (S) leader added.
RJD leader and party chief Lalu Prasad’s heir apparent Tejashwi Yadav, who on Wednesday postponed his ongoing berojgari hatao (remove unemployment) yatra till March 25 in view of the coronavirus epidemic, had earlier in the day dismissed Mr. Manjhi’s meeting with Mr. Kumar and said, “let Manjhi ji say whatever he wants to say… I cannot do anything on this but it was RJD who had made his son an MLC from its own party quota”. He also rhetorically wondered: “Moreover, how many seats were the NDA giving him in 2015 Assembly poll?”
Also read: Jitan Ram Manjhi accuses Tejashwi of showing ‘soft corner’ for NDA
At his press conference, Mr. Manjhi countered and said that it was because of him that the RJD had won the Araria and Jehanabad bypolls. “Lalu Prasad had called me up several times requesting me to join the mahagathbandhan,” he asserted. “They gave a ticket to my son for MLC in their own self-interest… Tejashwi knows nothing but Lalu Prasad knows everything well.”
Meanwhile, State Congress leader and party Rajya Sabha MP Akhilesh Prasad Singh said, “Manjhi ji is a mature politician and he will not go anywhere… he will remain with us”. And RLSP leader Madhav Anand said, “every one has his own interest and says things, but RLSP will remain with mahagathbandhan”.
The ruling JD(U) and BJP leaders, however, saw an opportunity to take a swipe at the opposition mahagathbandhan and said, “everything certainly is not well in there… let’s wait as before the Assembly polls mahagathbandhan will break away in parts”.
Assembly elections are scheduled to take place in Bihar in October-November this year.
