Kumar Bahukhandi
Nitish Kumar (X.com/@NitishKumar)
Patna: Upheaval jolted Bihar just weeks into 2024, as Nitish Kumar, the state’s longest-serving chief minister, made yet another dramatic volte-face to realign with his old ally, the BJP.
The septuagenarian, renowned for his uncanny ability to shift political allegiances at will while maintaining his grip on power, abandoned the INDIA bloc he had diligently helped form, relinquishing his hopes of securing a “national role” in politics. This unexpected move sent shockwaves through the political landscape, signalling yet another twist in Kumar’s ever-changing political journey.
Perhaps sensing in advance that Prime Minister Narendra Modi could be diminished but not vanquished, Kumar agreed to be an ally on whose support BJP now depends for survival in power at the Centre.
In the bargain, the 73-year-old leader has earned the backing of the BJP and all its junior allies in the state where assembly polls are due in 2025.
Kumar enjoys the clout even though skeptics such as political strategist-turned-politician Prashant Kishor have been at pains to insist that the once undeniably popular leader has become a spent force.
Kishor’s own foray into electoral politics was much talked about though it remains to be seen how his fledgling Jan Suraaj Party, which performed dismally in recent bypolls, would resonate with the voters.
The 47-year-old is confident that his party will emerge as the main rival of the ruling NDA, his optimism owing itself in no small measure to the disarray in the INDIA bloc since it lost Nitish Kumar to the BJP.
The RJD and the Congress, partners in government till Kumar was with them, failed to keep their flock together and many MLAs of the two parties crossed over to the NDA within days of the formation of the new government in the state.
A few months later, the Lok Sabha polls saw the INDIA bloc below par in Bihar, unlike even BJP strongholds like Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Haryana and Rajasthan where the opposition coalition gained the upper hand.
The ‘Mahagathbandhan’, an alliance of the RJD, Congress and Left combine in Bihar, continued to flounder in bypolls, failing to retain even sitting assembly seats.
Of late, an RJD-Congress spat over whether or not West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee should be allowed to lead the INDIA bloc has only exposed more chinks in the armour of the coalition.
All this has infused a sense of relief in the NDA camp, which was wary of public discontent over pre-paid electricity meters, land survey and hooch tragedies that put a question mark on the much-touted prohibition law and crumbling infrastructure which came to light with dozens of bridges and culverts caving in across the state.
While the CM seems relaxed enough despite setbacks like the Patna High Court setting aside hiked quotas for deprived castes, his former adversaries, who have become allies, appear content enjoying their share in power.
While the CM seems relaxed enough despite setbacks like the Patna High Court setting aside hiked quotas for deprived castes, his former adversaries, who have become allies, appear content enjoying their share in power.
Most notable among such allies is Chirag Paswan, who finally got the better of his estranged uncle Pashupati Kumar Paras, wrested the latter’s Hajipur Lok Sabha constituency which was once synonymous with his late father Ram Vilas Paswan.
Now a proud, young member of the Union cabinet, Paswan is rooting for Kumar, whom he had vowed to dislodge from power a few years ago. In an apparent reciprocation of gesture by the JD(U) supremo, who shall be running for another term in office, his government has allocated to Paswan the same bungalow that was once occupied by the latter’s late father.
A peculiar feature of the year was controversies erupting at most competitive examinations conducted in the state, some of which had to be cancelled in the wake of question paper leaks, while in some other cases there was a pushback from the authorities who claimed “rumours” were being spread about the fairness of the tests as part of a “conspiracy”.
A peculiar feature of the year was controversies erupting at most competitive examinations conducted in the state, some of which had to be cancelled in the wake of question paper leaks, while in some other cases there was a pushback from the authorities who claimed “rumours”
Incidentally, it was also in Bihar, the state capital to be precise, where the arrest of some people had taken the lid off alleged irregularities in NEET, bringing aggrieved medical aspirants from across the country on to the streets.
Although the year did not see any noteworthy action against political bigwigs for alleged corruption, a top bureaucrat was brought under dragnet by the Enforcement Directorate.
Sanjeev Hans, a principal secretary-rank IAS officer, has ended up behind the bars in a money laundering case, which, incidentally, came to light in the course of the investigation into allegations of sexual assault made by a woman.
The state successfully hosted the Asian Women’s Hockey tournament, the first occasion for a multinational sporting event to take place in Bihar, till recently considered off the map for such purposes.
Once deemed a basket case that failed to benefit from the economic boom that followed liberalisation in 1990s, Bihar has of late shown signs of progress, with a healthy growth rate that has been sustained over many years.
This seems to have instilled confidence in private investors. The business summit hosted by the state this year saw MoUs being signed worth about Rs 1.80 lakh crore, five times more than the proposals received a year ago. The government, too, seems willing to do its bid.
In a densely populated state where availability of land has been the proverbial sore thumb, the government acquired 8,000 acres in the current financial year for setting up businesses and announced that acquisition of another 10,000 acres was on the cards in the next fiscal.
( Source : PTI )
