All eyes on formation of govt in state

Patna: After the NDA’s sweeping victory in the Bihar assembly elections on Friday, political circles were abuzz with speculation over the swearing-in date and the formal announcement of the chief minister’s name.

The timing of the ceremony is expected to hinge on the availability of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who had assured that he would attend the oath-taking in Patna following the NDA’s win.With govt formation likely to begin next week, attention turned to whether chief minister Nitish Kumar might spring a surprise by offering to pass the baton to the BJP, now the single largest party in the assembly. However, leaders within the JD(U) maintained that Nitish would continue to head the govt.When asked about Nitish’s continuation, BJP state president Dilip Jaiswal told reporters that the party’s immediate focus would be on programmes to thank the people of Bihar over the next few days. “After that the MLAs from all parties will elect their respective leaders. Following that, the NDA MLAs will collectively elect their leader. This is the constitutional process for govt formation,” he said. On Nitish being re-elected as CM, he added that the central leadership would take the decision.

Senior JD(U) leader and Union minister Rajeev Ranjan Singh, alias Lallan Singh, who met Nitish in the morning, asserted there was no vacancy for the chief minister’s post in Bihar. Senior JD(U) leader Shyam Rajak, newly elected from Phulwarisharif, echoed the same view, saying Nitish would be CM again.LJP (Ram Vilas) president and Union minister Chirag Paswan expressed a similar belief, noting that he personally felt Nitish would once again become chief minister.

“But as the Constitution dictates, the MLAs will elect their leader as the CM,” he told reporters on Saturday. The LJP(RV) MLAs elected Govindganj MLA Raju Tiwari as their legislature party leader.Meanwhile, BJP leaders met in Patna to deliberate on the contours of the new govt, including the participation of allies and cabinet composition. Samrat Choudhary and Ram Kripal Yadav emerged as the leading contenders from the BJP for the deputy CM posts, with another name under consideration from the Chirag Paswan-led LJP(RV).Ram Kripal, who defeated Ritlal Rai (Yadav) — for whom RJD chief Lalu Prasad had held a roadshow in Danapur — also met Nitish at his residence. Once widely known as Lalu’s ‘Hanuman’, the former Union minister played down speculation about the deputy CM position. “I don’t know anything,” he said, adding that the party leadership would decide. His name, however, is being floated as a message to the Yadav community, traditionally seen as aligned with the RJD.