Amid escalating political tension in Bihar, the Janata Dal (United) has scheduled a legislature meeting for 10 am on Sunday, amidst speculation that Nitish Kumar might realign with the BJP-led NDA, reports said. It is anticipated that following the meeting, he will proceed to meet Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar to assert his claim to form a new government, with the swearing-in ceremony expected to take place on Sunday evening or Monday morning.
Nitish to resign today: reports
Nitish Kumar is expected to resign as CM by today, Saturday evening. There are rumors circulating that several Congress MLAs may break away from the Mahagathbandhan and join Nitish Kumar in aligning with the NDA.
At the same time, the BJP has also called a meeting of its MLAs at 9 AM on Sunday.
As per reports, Nitish Kumar will tonight receive a letter of support from BJP signed by its MLAs. Tomorrow, the Bihar Chief Minister will be accompanied by the saffron party's House leader and president when he meets the Governor.
Race on for numbers game
However, as Nitish prepares for another switch, both the NDA and Mahagathbandhan are scrambling to woo MLAs from each other's factions in order to secure the numbers game.
Here are the current numbers of MLAs from each party in the assembly:
RJD: 79
BJP: 76
JD(U): 45
CONGRESS: 19
LEFT PARTIES: 16
HAM (S): 4
AIMIM: 1
IND: 1
BSP: 1
LJP: 1
RJD hunts for 8 MLAs
In the scenario where Nitish Kumar withdraws the JD(U) from the ruling coalition, the RJD would require an additional eight MLAs to reach the 122-mark, securing its position as the predominant force in the state assembly.
Sources indicate that four independent MLAs previously aligned with former Bihar Chief Minister Jitan Ram Manjhi, along with one legislator from AIMIM and another independent MLA, may unite with the RJD.
There's widespread speculation about the possibility of either appointing Jitan Ram Manjhi as the CM or his son as the deputy CM in exchange for their support to the RJD.
The Mahagathbandhan currently holds 114 MLAs (comprising 79 from RJD, 19 from Congress, and 16 from the Left). Even with the inclusion of HAM, AIMIM, and independent MLAs, the total stands at 120, falling 2 short of the majority mark.
To bridge this gap, reports suggest that the RJD is attempting to sway JD(U) MLAs. Reports have cited discontent among several JD(U) legislators over Nitish's alliance with the BJP.
JD(U)-BJP ahead in numbers game
With BJP (76) already having support from the HAM (4) and LJP (1), the addition of JD(U)'s 45 MLAs takes the tally to 126, which takes the NDA comfortable cross the majority mark with 4 MLAs extra.
With the BJP (76) already enjoying support from the HAM (4) and LJP (1), the inclusion of JD(U)'s 45 MLAs brings the tally to 126, comfortably crossing the majority mark within the NDA, with an excess of 4 MLAs.
However, Nitish Kumar is reportedly apprehensive about Lalu Yadav's efforts to divide his MLAs to assert a claim for forming the government. This concern has prompted him to advocate for the dissolution of the assembly.
On the flip side, both the JD(U) and BJP are actively pursuing the defection of several MLAs from both the RJD and Congress camps to bolster their numbers in the event of a tight majority vote on the floor.
