Chirag Paswan

NDA’s Chirag Paswan, Ramdas Athawale Oppose SC, ST Sub-Classification Verdict

Paswan did support the contentious caste census, and Athawale welcomed the court’s decision to sub-classify SC and ST communities.

Mumbai: The Supreme Court’s ruling on Friday (August 2) allowing states to sub-classify the Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs) for the purpose of granting separate quotas has elicited strong opposition from anti-caste groups and political leaders.

Many members of the ruling NDA government have also expressed their discontent over the seven-judge constitution bench’s decision, which was delivered with a 6:1 majority and allowed sub-classification for the purpose of separately reserving seats in educational institutions and public employment for the more backward among the scheduled communities.

Union ministers Chirag Paswan and Ramdas Athawale are among those who opposed the verdict.

At a press conference in Patna, Paswan stated that his party, the Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas), will appeal the decision.

“Our party will go for an appeal requesting the apex court to review its recent judgement allowing sub-groups within the 15% SC quota,” PTI quoted him as saying.

The Supreme Court’s judgment, which includes six separate opinions, discusses the application of the “creamy layer” within the community.

Interestingly, the application of the creamy layer principle was not contested in any petition.

The term “creamy layer” has so far been used in the context of the Other Backward Classes (OBC), where those among them who are socially, economically and educationally advanced are excluded from reservation benefits.

The creamy layer, as it stands today, refers to individuals above a certain income level – Rs 8 lakh per annum for the OBCs – who are excluded from quota benefits.

“Creamy layer cannot be allowed in the SC quota. Allowing sub-groups within the SC quota will not serve the purpose of uplifting the socially marginalised segment that has been a victim of the practice of untouchability,” Paswan said at the press conference according to PTI.

He spoke about the historical marginalisation and discrimination that Dalit communities have suffered even after accessing education. “The majority of Scheduled Caste people, even those from well-to-do families and with access to education, face untouchability. Therefore, allowing sub-groups within the SC is not justified,” he said.

Sub-grouping among the SCs is not a new phenomenon. In Bihar, under the leadership of chief minister Nitish Kumar (who is also part of the NDA like Paswan’s party), a separate ‘Mahadalit’ category has been created.

While Paswan did not comment on the existing sub-classification in Bihar, he expressed support for conducting the contentious caste census, which the BJP government has been avoiding and the opposition has been demanding vociferously lately.

The Republican Party of India (Athawale) leader too opposed the verdict. Athawale’s RPI has long been a part of the NDA and he said his party strongly opposed any move to divide SC/ST communities by the application of creamy layer logic.

“The reservation for SCs/STs is based on caste. The RPI (Athawale) will strongly oppose any move to apply the criteria of creamy layer to reservation for SCs and STs,” PTI cited Athawale as saying.

Athawale, however, welcomed the court’s decision to sub-classify SC and ST communities.

‘Modi’s Hanuman’ to Issue-Based Alliance: Chirag Paswan Has Proven His Political Acumen

The complex caste-based equations in rural areas and widespread support in urban pockets appear to be helping Chirag.

Hajipur (Bihar): Chirag Paswan lost his father Ram Vilas Paswan, the tallest Dalit leader in Bihar, right in the middle of the 2020 assembly polls in Bihar. Still learning the ropes of the state’s complex political dynamics, he suddenly found himself in the middle of a bitter succession struggle. To add insult to his injuries, Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar ensured that Ram Vilas’s party, the Lok Janshakti Party (LJP), was kept out of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led National Democratic Alliance, even as his uncle Pasupati Kumar Paras conspired to gain control over LJP legislators and MPs around the same time.

Observers started speculating that Chirag’s political career may not take off after all. The Narendra Modi regime, too, turned towards Paras, who had the support of his party’s elected representatives. Pushed to a corner, Chirag proved everyone wrong. He waged a guerilla, although non-violent, war against Nitish by putting up ‘upper caste’ candidates against the Janata Dal (United) wherever it contested, while supporting the BJP candidates in the rest of the constituencies.

In each of his interviews, where he appeared as a mourning son, dressed in unstitched white dhotis sporting a shaved head, he called himself Modi’s “Hanuman”, even as he launched a scathing attack against Nitish’s administration.

The division that he brought about in the NDA diverted upper caste votes away from Nitish, bringing his party’s tally down from 71 in 2015 to 43 in 2020. In one move, Chirag not only gave a striking blow to Nitish, whose fall was apparent even back then, but also signalled his own indispensability to the prime minister.

In 2021, Modi took Paras on his side by giving him a cabinet post. The Election Commission of India, meanwhile, froze the party’s name Lok Janshakti Party and its symbol the bungalow, and split the party. Chirag was allowed to have a party named after his father – the Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) – while his uncle and his aide, Chirag’s cousin Prince Raj, were allotted the name Rashtriya Lok Janshakti Party.

The Ambedkar Statue at Anwarpur Chowk is a popular destination for all political parties in Hajipur. Photo: Ajoy Ashirwad Mahaprashasta

When it really mattered, however, Modi chose Chirag over his uncle. Paras, now, is absent, nowhere to be seen even in Hajipur (from where Paras is the sitting MP) – as if told by the prime minister himself to lay low. Chirag, on the other hand, left his seat Jamui and is the NDA candidate from his father’s stronghold Hajipur, fighting to claim Ram Vilas Paswan’s legacy.

At the Anwarpur Chowk of Hajipur town, Beena Devi and her husband Raju Choudhary had hung Chirag’s party flag on their fruit-selling cart. They had also kept a sample EVM machine showing Chirag as the No.3 in the list of candidates, letting every customer know that his symbol is a helicopter now, not the old bungalow of Ram Vilas Paswan’s party.

“We are not happy with Modi, but we are with Chirag as his father has done a lot for our colony,” said Beena Devi. “No development work has happened here in the last five years, but we hope that Chirag, like his father, will help us in the times of our need.”

Beena Devi and Raju Choudhary, Pasi community supporters of Chirag Paswan, in Hajipur town. Photo: Ajoy Ashirwad Mahaprashasta

The couple belong to the Dalit Pasi community, which appeared to have switched from the Janata Dal (United) to the Tejashwi Yadav-led Rashtriya Janata Dal in most other constituencies, but not in Hajipur. “Chirag will get votes from most Harijans except maybe Chamars,” remarked Beena Devi.

She said since RJD has fielded a Chamar candidate, Shiv Chandra Ram, against Chirag, he should get his caste’s votes.

A large section of voters in Hajipur town expressed solidarity towards Chirag.

Dhananjay Ram in Lalganj. Photo: Ajoy Ashirwad Mahaprashasta

In Lalganj, a rural assembly seat within the Hajipur Lok Sabha seat, Dhananjay Ram confirmed Beena Devi’s assessment. Ram, a Chamar by caste, told The Wire, “Ram Vilas Paswan was a well-respected man, but not Chirag. We are not looking at Shiv Chandra Ram’s caste, but our community will vote for the RJD as we are fed up with the Modi regime.”

He explained, “Modi ji launched so many air-conditioned trains but the general unreserved coaches in most trains have come down from four to two. How will daily-wage labourers afford AC trains? If you go to Hajipur station, you will find so many labourers who sometimes wait for two days at the station just to find a train where they can get an unreserved seat. Our wages have increased minimally, but the cost of living is shooting through the roof.”

“Our zero balance Jan Dhan accounts have remained zero balance only. Everything that you buy is taxed so much because of the GST. And now, we hear that Modi ji plans to take away our reservation, too,” Ram said.

RJD’s Shiv Chandra Ram’s office in Hajipur. Photo: Ajoy Ashirwad Mahaprashasta

Not merely Chamars and Paswans, Dalits appeared to be split in their party preferences. Vikas Rajak, a dhobi in Lalganj, told The Wire, “I voted for the BJP in the last two elections but will vote for RJD this time. Our community leaders have also joined the RJD because of Tejashwi Yadav’s appeal.”

On the other hand, Dullu Dusadh, a Paswan community member in Sadullapur village, vouched for Chirag. “It is because of Ram Vilas ji that we have earned some respect. Ram Vilas ji fought for us. We can’t betray him by not voting for his son.”

While the Dalits seemed split, the Extremely Backward Castes showed their preference for Modi. In fact, constituencies like Hajipur become interesting because of the crucial role non-Dalits play in reserved seats.

“Jo khila raha hai, usi ko na denge vote (Who else should we vote if not for the one who is feeding us),” said Ramu Mahato, an EBC Noniya community member.

RJD workers in Lalganj. Photo: Ajoy Ashirwad Mahaprashasta

Similarly, Tejashwi, an EBC Nai by caste, said, “We have always voted for the BJP, and we will do the same. There is a lot of local corruption here. Instead of five kg ration, we only get four kg. We did not even get a sauchalaya (toilet) but the records showed we received Rs 12,000 for it. But at least the Modi government has thought about poor people like us; the Nitish government has not implemented it properly.”

But the Mallah community members, who are traditional boatmen and fishermen, appeared to be veering towards the RJD, mostly because of its alliance with Mallah leader Mukesh Sahani’s Vikasheel Insaan Party (VIP). “Nitish Kumar has killed us without using a knife. Our sole income through sand loading in the rivers has been stopped. Now, we have to rely entirely on small-scale fishing. On top of it, we are being fined for not paying hefty electricity bills. Many of us have got electricity bills of thousands. How are we supposed to pay it?” said Pappu Sahani in the Shadullapur vegetable mandi.

On the other hand, landed caste groups like Bhumihars and Rajputs swear their allegiance to Modi and issues like nationalism, Ram Mandir and Article 370. “There has been no terror-related incident in the last few years. We remember how the Congress was scared of Pakistan. But now it is the other way around. Pakistan knows that Modi ji is not someone who will take their attacks lying down,” said Rinku Singh, a potato trader in Shadullapur who belonged to the Bhumihar caste group.

Bhumihar traders in Shadullapur Mandi, Hajipur. Photo: Ajoy Ashirwad Mahaprashasta

“If you see, Modi ji has done nothing for Bihar over the last 10 years. There has been no development that would have improved our lives. But he has excelled in other areas. Now, India has a good stature globally. He has improved India’s reputation in the world,” said Narendra Pratap Singh, a Rajput who, too, trades in vegetables at the mandi.

Yadavs and Muslims, however, preferred the lantern, the RJD’s election symbol, over the helicopter. “Our vote will be to change a government that has worked only for the rich, and done nothing for Bihar. All of us are on the road because of Modi,” said Suresh Rai, a Yadav whose primary business is sand mining.

The complex caste-based equations in rural areas and widespread support in urban pockets appear to be helping Chirag, despite Shiv Chandra Ram’s spirited efforts to break the BJP’s traditional support base. Ram has lost to Pasupati Kumar Paras in 2019 by a margin of over two lakh votes.

Days ahead of the May 20, 2024 voting in Hajipur, Chirag gave an interesting interview to The Wire. He said that the pejorative remarks against Muslims by BJP leaders, including Modi, were “unnecessary” and that his alliance with the BJP is solely “issue-based”. His statement is a far cry from his positioning as Modi’s ‘Hanuman’ in the 2020 assembly polls. Chirag said that he had also expressed his disagreement within the NDA on matters like creating a ‘Hindu Rashtra’. Call it a tactical retreat or conditional support, but with such a shift, Chirag indicated that he may be aware of the churning among Dalits and EBCs, the two sections of the electorate that had made his father a politically influential leader in Bihar. His repositioning has also kept his doors open for different alliances in the 2025 state assembly polls.

Chirag is proving himself as a leader in his own right. By understanding his party’s strengths as a Dalit party, he is placing his cards tactfully, and with a political acumen that his father possessed in abundance. He is truly emerging as the rightful heir to the legacy of his father, who had earned the title of India’s most prescient political weathervane.

Watch | There is No Need for Modi to Speak About Muslims This Way: Chirag Paswan

On matters like creating a “Hindu rashtra”, he added that he had expressed his disagreement within the National Democratic Alliance. “Changing the Constitution is no joke,” he said.

Patna: Chirag Paswan of the Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) has told The Wire‘s Arfa Khanum Sherwani that he disagrees with the way Prime Minister Narendra Modi has spoken of Muslims in his recent poll speeches, and there is “no need” for these comments. Paswan, whose party has joined the National Democratic Alliance led by the Bharatiya Janata Party, is the sitting MP from Jamui in Bihar.

When asked about Modi’s repeated references to Muslims as “infiltrators”, “Pakistani” and “those who have more children”, Paswan said, “I believe that there is no need for comments like this.” On matters like creating a “Hindu rashtra“, he added that he had expressed his disagreement within the National Democratic Alliance. “Changing the Constitution is no joke,” he said.

“My party has its own policies,” Paswan told The Wire, “and I have repeatedly said that my alliance is issue-based. My alliance with the BJP is issue-based, I believe this very clearly.”

In the interview conducted in Patna, Paswan also talks about his break with his family and party after his father’s death, the political atmosphere during the current elections and more.

New Book on Ram Vilas Paswan Shows How He Was a Man For All Seasons

Sobhana K. Nair has certainly managed to do justice to the task of writing a biography on Paswan and unravelling his life; and she has brought out his personality with her racy style and without holding back any punches.

Those familiar with the political discourse of the 1980s in India will know Ram Vilas Paswan as one of the leaders who excelled at the art of surviving the rough and tumble of the democratic experience and also preserved himself to enjoy the trappings of comfort in Lutyens’ Delhi for most part of his political life.

If his landing in the world of parliamentary politics in 1969 as member of the Bihar legislative assembly was by sheer force of circumstance and chance, he did manage to anchor himself in ministerial comforts; and this he achieved making several ‘U’ turns unabashedly and with ease.

Sobhana K. Nair mentions, right at the outset of her book, titled Ram Vilas Paswan: The Weathervane of Indian Politics, the circumstance of the meeting she had with Paswan some day in August 2018, from where she thought of this book; a biography is not the easiest task to undertake, especially when the biographer is not one of those who are in love with the personality.

Sobhana K. Nair
Ram Vilas Paswan
Roli Books (2024)

And New Delhi is indeed home for a number of them. And the subject matter – Paswan – was certainly known for his penchant to cultivate journalists through means fair and foul.

Nair, however, is not among them and she has certainly managed to do justice to the task and to unravel Paswan’s life; and she has brought out his personality with her racy style and without holding back any punches.

The mention, in the text, of the largesse Paswan had distributed as Minister for Railways and then as Minister for Telecommunications, benefitting journalists across the country, is noteworthy; and especially when it comes from a journalist.

The author, however, need not have gone through the experience of her meeting with Paswan in August 2018 to learn of his lack of conviction; she seemed lost when Paswan, as she recalls, did suggest his unease over the arrest and detention of some activists and academicians for their alleged involvement in the Elgar Parishad; and yet did not want to come out with his views on the event, the arrests and the larger politics surrounding them.

Paswan’s attitude on these was consistent, and a specific case in point was the massacre at Laxmanpur-Bathe in the intervening night of November 30 and December 1, 1997. As many as 58 lives (most of whom were Dalits) were snatched away by the Ranvir Sena that night, and Paswan did not show any pain; he did not even squeak.

The fact is the dead, even while belonging to the Dussadh caste among the Dalits, had aligned with the Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) Liberation (CPI(ML)L), whose fight was for socio-economic reforms and not sheer identity politics, which remained the mainstay for Paswan and many such others as Mayawati in Uttar Pradesh.

Also read: The Contradictions between Ram Vilas Paswan’s Personal Beliefs and Professional Compulsions

That Paswan, until his end in October 2020, failed to achieve what Mayawati could in Uttar Pradesh – end up as chief minister in 1996 first and thrice later on – is because the discourse in the two states are distinct.

The critical distinction is the class-caste overlap in Bihar and its centrality in the domain of Dalit assertion, while in Uttar Pradesh, such an overlap is not so pronounced. Hence, what was good for UP and Mayawati was not so with regard to Bihar and Paswan.

In other words, Paswan hardly ventured into any movement seeking a socio-economic transformation (which the CPI-ML had founded and consolidated since the late 1960s) and restricted himself to maneuvering with identity politics; his claims to having been a socialist (and Nair too describes him that way) do not match with evidence.

Well. The author brings out his election as MLA in 1969, which happened by chance; and the fact that he was innocent of anything to do with all that the Socialist Party stood for at that time. The fact is the party was desperately looking for candidates and Paswan happened to land as one in that election in 1969.

The 1977 general elections too were one such instance when anyone who managed to swing a candidature from the Janata umbrella won a landslide win: it so happened that Paswan happened to be one of those and the Hajipur Lok Sabha seat would have gone to Ram Sundar Das but for what the author points out was a crucial intervention from Jayaprakash Narayan in Paswan’s favour.

The book catches all the events in Paswan’s life in politics since then and that he managed to make sure he was in the right place each time when elections were held.

Barring a dark patch between 1984 and 1989, when Paswan was homeless in New Delhi after his defeat from Hajipur in the 1984 general election, he lived in the comforts of Lutyens Delhi; and since 1989, he pulled all stops to ensure that he and his family profited pretty much with a paraphernalia of servants and officers.

Nair does tell this story pretty much well and her racy style does convey all things of this kind to the reader.

And in the end, the author leaves none in doubt as to the extent to which Paswan, notwithstanding his claims to belong to the socialist stable, ended up acting in a manner that was best to take care of his son, Chirag Paswan, even if it meant putting principles, conviction and consistency as barter on the altar.

Also read: Is He Really a ‘Chirag’ of Hope For the NDA in Bihar?

And his brothers, whom he promoted apart from himself, too were expendable in order to hoist his son Chirag on the political stage.

The book tells us the story that Ram Vilas Paswan rose from nowhere into a prominent player in the political theatre in New Delhi, or should we say Lutyen’s Delhi; that he was a survivor and ended up a man for all seasons – the weathervane as Nair rightly puts it.

However, she seems to have pulled her punches insofar as one another aspect of his life: and that is the story of his rise from lower middle-class moorings in Bihar into a life of riches and wealth in New Delhi, a story that may fit the lives and times of a host of political leaders who rose in the 1970s and survived in the world of politics about the same time as Paswan did.

Krishna Ananth is an observer of politics and is the author of India Since Independence: Making Sense of Politics, Pearson Longman, New Delhi, 2009.

In Bihar, Narendra Modi Banks on Rhetoric From 2019

Meanwhile, Nitish Kumar who once symbolised the power of an articulate rebel against the Modi brand of Hindutva, lavished praise on the PM’s ‘development work.’

Narendra Modi kicked off his election campaign in Bihar on April 4 from Jamui. This happened as the Rashtriya Janata Dal’s Tejashwi Yadav circulated a list of National Democratic Alliance candidates who are relatives of former politicians in the four seats scheduled for polls on April 19 and reports of three dozen politicians cleared of corruption charges after joining the Bharatiya Janata Party.

This list took on BJP’s much-vaunted claim of not promoting dynastic politics. Perhaps because of this and also partly because of the presence of Chirag Paswan, son of the late Dalit leader Ram Vilas Paswan on the dais, the prime minister refrained from his usual attack of Lalu Prasad Yadav for family politics.

Of course, he attacked Lalu and Tejashwi (without naming them) for the alleged ‘land for job’ scam, asserting that he “wouldn’t spare corrupt leaders”. But Modi’s words came amidst reports of witch hunting against the Aam Aadmi Party leaders and repeated mentions by opposition of several tainted leaders enjoying power and pelf after shifting to the BJP.

The prime minister’s rhetoric was also lacking in freshness. He shied away from speaking on what his government has achieved on the scale of life and livelihood for the people and harped on the same content that he had used during his 2019 campaigns.

“Aaj ka Bharat ghar mein ghus kar marta hai (Today’s India strikes the enemy at home)”, Modi said. He had used pretty much the same words that he had in 2019 in the wake of the terror attack on the Army at Pulwama and the subsequent air-strike at Balakot in Pakistan.

These words in the wake of the Pulwama and Balakot incidents and the dramatic release of Indian Air Force pilot Captain Abhinandan Varthaman were believed to have created a wave in favour of the BJP, fetching it a stupendous victory in 2019 polls. Will the same rhetoric work to the advantage of the BJP, five years down the line?

Also read: Balakot and After, or How to Build a Strategic Doctrine for Political Gain

While he picked on Pakistan, Modi didn’t speak on the reports of China’s alleged advances in Arunachal Pradesh. He dwelt at length on how the Congress and RJD symbolised a “jungle raaj” and how the women were “picked up from the streets” during the RJD-Congress’s rule in Bihar. But he shied away from speaking on the crimes against women in Manipur, flagged by national and international media.

The PM once again described the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) as the “conglomeration of arrogant and corrupt leaders joining hands to save their skin from the investigating agencies turning the heat on them.”

Nitish, a pale shadow

Much to the amusement of the audience, the chief minister, Nitish Kumar who shared the dais with Modi, said, “Wo to jhooth-mooth ka ek baar saath karliye thay. Ab kahin nahin jaayeign (Once, for a short while, I had gone to them. I won’t go anywhere now)”. It was the fifth flip-flop in his political career, and his recent switcheroo is still fresh in the minds of the people.

Nitish who once symbolised the power of an articulate rebel against the Modi brand of Hindutva, was lavish in praise of the PM’s “development work”. But he clearly lacked the coherence, confidence and logic he was once known for. Instead of enumerating his own work he attacked Tejashwi (without naming him) for taking credit for jobs that his government provided to the youths when he led the alliance government in the state with Tejashwi as his deputy.

Also read: Bihar: Why Upcoming Lok Sabha Polls Could Spell Doom for Nitish Kumar

Nitish tried to reach out to minorities by saying, “As long as we (the NDA) are together, there will be no communal riots. Our (NDA’s) rule has been free from riots”. Of course, Nitish has hopes of appealing to Muslims who had supported him in a big way in the 2010 assembly elections despite him being in the NDA. But even then, despite his association with the NDA, he had been well known as the fiercest critic of Modi.

Will Muslims who constitute over 17% of the state’s electorate repose the same trust when he is with the BJP under Modi? Will they prefer the NDA over the RJD-Congress-Left combine?

There is hardly any indication, as of now, to suggest that minorities will have any sympathy for Nitish after his switchover to the BJP.

Chirag Paswan

It could be his fear of losing the Jamui seat for the third term in the Lok Sabha or his driving desire to represent Hajipur – the Lok Sabha seat identified with his father Ram Vilas Paswan’s political prowess – Chirag has opted for Hajpur at the cost of his uncle, Pashupati Kumar Paras, for the 2024 polls. His Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) has fielded his brother-in-law, Arun Bharti against the RJD’s Archana Ravidas, a Dalit woman activist.

Modi praised the late leader and said, “My friend (Ram Vilas Paswan) is no more but I am happy that Chirag Paswan is furthering his ideology and legacy. The response of the crowd suggests that the Jamui voters have made up their mind to vote for the NDA on April 19”.

The PM pointed out that Jamui was in the grip of Naxalism, impeding the construction of roads and other development works as long as the RJD-Congress ruled Bihar. “But the development works have been taking place since the NDA under Nitish Kumar taking over the state”.

However, Jamui bordering Deoghar in Jharkhand, and inhabited by a large number of communities belonging to the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, continue to be as backward as ever with roads, schools, basic health centres and other civic amenities still eluding its countryside.

Nalin Verma is a senior journalist, author, media educator and independent researcher in folklore.

Is He Really a ‘Chirag’ of Hope For the NDA in Bihar?

The reason why the BJP dumped Chirag Paswan’s uncle Pashupati Kumar Paras is simple: it did not want Chirag – whose name can be translated as lamp or light – to cross over to the INDIA bloc. But its need for either Paras or Chirag raises questions about its strength.

For tracing the genesis of the BJP’s sudden love for Chirag Paswan, the leader of the Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas), one needs to examine the developments which took place before and after the October -November 2020 assembly election in Bihar.

The fact is that most of the media narratives about Chirag, whom the BJP has now decided to use, were not factually correct. But since such fantastic stories suit the powers that be, they are consciously planted in the media. And there is no dearth of journalists ready to accomplish this job.

The reason for the dumping of his uncle and Union minister Pashupati Kumar Paras by the BJP is simple. It did not want young Chirag to cross over and tie up with the INDIA combination.

The saffron party feared that in such a case, it would lose the votes of the Dusadhs – who usually use Paswan as their surname and make up 5.3% of the state’s population – to the opposition alliance.

Old Paras, according to its estimate, does not have a similar hold on his caste-men.

But in July 2021, the same BJP found in Paras all the merits and made him a minister in the Union cabinet. Four other MPs of his breakaway Rashtriya Lok Janshakti Party got instructions – guess from where – to follow Paras and not Chirag, who was left alone.

The split was engineered by the BJP, and not the Janata Dal (United) (JD(U)), to teach Chirag a lesson for his role in Bihar’s 2020 assembly election, in which the NDA just managed to win by a wafer-thin majority.

In fact, a very weak JD(U) was not capable of causing such a division in the Lok Janshakti Party (LJP).

According to the BJP, Paras (left) does not have a similar hold as Chirag Paswan does on his caste-men. Photo: X/@PashupatiParas.

Favourite whipping boy

One needs to be reminded that immediately after the results of the 2020 assembly election, Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar put all the blame on Chirag for the poor performance of his own party, the JD(U), which could win only 43 of the 122 seats it contested.

Chirag’s (then-united) LJP had fielded 137 candidates for a house of 243. Thus, it did not fight as an NDA constituent.

The media went to town with this version without cross-checking the fact that Nitish actually needed a whipping boy for the disastrous performance.

Soon, the story started appearing in the print and electronic media that it was actually the BJP which put up all these LJP candidates to weaken Nitish.

In a post facto analysis, one can come to any absurd conclusion. If Chirag was really responsible for the JD(U)’s bad show, who was responsible for the equally dismal performance of the more organised, cadre-based BJP?

If the JD(U) could win only 43 of the 122 seats it contested, why did the BJP bag just 74 out of the 121 seats for which it fielded candidates? Why did the saffron party not win, say, 100 or more seats? After all, in the 2010 assembly election, the BJP won 91 out of 102 seats, while Nitish’s party won 115 out of the 141 it contested.

Herein lies the crux of the matter. If the BJP had really weakened the JD(U) by putting LJP candidates, then it almost committed suicide, because ultimately, the NDA barely managed to win.

Also read: How Has the Bihar Political Landscape Changed Since Nitish Kumar’s Crossover to the BJP?

Turmoil in the BJP

The truth of the matter was that the BJP was itself in turmoil throughout the assembly election campaign.

As many as 22 of its state-level leaders had deserted the party and joined the LJP when they failed to get tickets. This included Rajendra Singh, a senior RSS functionary, who was even projected as the party’s CM face in the 2015 assembly election.

Besides, Rameshwar Chaurasia and Usha Vidyarthi, former MLA and minister respectively, also contested on LJP tickets.

There was complete chaos in the saffron camp, which the media underplayed for obvious reasons.

Apart from this, 15 of the LJP’s candidates (137 minus 122) stood against the BJP’s official nominees. So, the NDA heaved a great sigh of relief when the results came out.

If Nitish put all the blame on Chirag, the BJP top brass got rid of deputy chief minister Sushil Kumar Modi. The truth is that more than Sushil Modi, it was the central leadership that was responsible for the total confusion within the so-called well-disciplined BJP.

It needs to be recalled that on October 22, Sushil Modi wrote on X (formerly Twitter) that he tested COVID-19 positive and was hospitalised, and thus would not attend Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s opening election rally in Sasaram a day later.

But a couple of days after, he was seen campaigning. This raised a lot of eyebrows in political circles.

Also read: The Loneliness of Sushil Kumar Modi

As Chirag was well-suited to become the favourite whipping boy, nobody raised any objections to his father’s stand. But the fact was that before his death on October 8 – that is, just 20 days before the first phase of polling – Ram Vilas Paswan, then-Union fertiliser minister, had been extremely critical of Nitish Kumar’s handling of the first COVID-19 wave.

Not only that, but the process of distributing LJP tickets to rebel BJP leaders had started when he was still alive.

The BJP top echelon remained mute spectators when the LJP and the JD(U), even during Ram Vilas Paswan’s lifetime, were locked in a grim, wordy duel.

So, when Modi decided to induct Paras into his cabinet on July 8, 2021, the motive was to sideline Chirag, who was following his father’s line against Nitish Kumar. The idea was to go to polls with Paras as the Dusadh face.

But in the last three years or so, the saffron party realised that Paras does not have a hold on the caste.

Apart from this, unlike in the 2020 assembly poll, when the LJP went solo, this time there was a likelihood of Chirag being wooed by the INDIA combination.

Thus, the ruling party had to drop Paras like a hot potato and join hands with Chirag.

Finally, as Modi is losing his magic touch and Dusadhs in a sizeable number are inclined towards the Rashtriya Janata Dal and Left parties too, in particular the Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) Liberation, it was necessary to rope Chirag in.

Had the BJP been really powerful, it would not have bothered about either Chirag or Paras, which incidentally means ‘touchstone’.

Bihar: As Hooch Tragedy Toll Rises, NHRC to Send Spot Investigation Team

Chief minister Nitish Kumar is facing flak from friends and foes alike over his refusal to pay compensation to family members of those who died in the Saran hooch tragedy and his “insensitive” comments.

New Delhi: As opposition politicians contest the Bihar government’s official death toll due to the consumption of hooch in Saran district of Bihar, the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has decided to depute its own investigation team to conduct an “on-spot” inquiry.

Meanwhile, officials in Bihar said on Saturday that eight more people died after consuming spurious liquor in two new incidents. Six people died in the Siwan district, which adjoins Saran, while Begusarai witnessed two other deaths.

While unconfirmed reports have said that up to 60 people have died so far after drinking illicitly brewed country liquor in Saran district, officials have pegged the toll at 30. The opposition BJP, in a memorandum submitted to governor Phagu Chauhan, claimed that the number of deaths was “more than 100”.

The sale and consumption of liquor have been outlawed in Bihar since 2016.

The NHRC wants to know where and what kind of medical treatment is being provided to the victims of hooch poisoning. “Most of them are from poor families and probably cannot afford costly medical treatment in private hospitals. Therefore, it becomes extremely necessary on the part of the state government to provide them the best possible medical treatment wherever it is available,” it said in a statement.

“The Commission would like to know about the relief and rehabilitation given by the state government as well as the measures taken or proposed to be taken to dismantle clandestine hooch manufacturing hotspots across the state with a view to completely eradicate this social menace, intermittently happening in the state of Bihar,” the rights panel said.

The NHRC has issued notices to the Bihar government and the state’s police chief over the Saran hooch tragedy, officials said on Friday. The Saran tragedy “indicates the failure of the state government” on implementing its policy of prohibition of sale and consumption of illicit or spurious liquor in the state, the panel said.

Also Read: Nine Words That Can Reduce the Deadly Toll of Liquor Tragedies

Nitish Kumar draws flak for righteous attitude

Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar has drawn flak from friends and foes alike over his refusal to pay compensation to family members of those who died in the Saran hooch tragedy and his “insensitive” comments that people who consume spurious liquor are destined to die (piyoge to maroge).

The BJP’s claim that the actual death toll was higher than 100 was echoed by Chirag Paswan, an NDA sympathiser and strident critic of Nitish Kumar.

“I visited Saran today to meet the bereaved family members and was appalled to learn that the administration was putting pressure on them not to report deaths caused by hooch or attribute these to other causes so that the magnitude of the tragedy is downplayed. I am told that the number of those who have died may be even as high as 200,” Paswan told the news agency PTI.

The Jamui MP also slammed Nitish for “adopting double standards”, noting that when Gopalganj was struck by a hooch tragedy in 2016, shortly after the prohibition law had come into force, the chief minister had compensated the victims.

Leader of Opposition in the Bihar assembly and BJP leader Vijay Kumar Sinha (4th from right) with legislators shouts slogans during a protest against Bihar government over the Chhapra Hooch tragedy, in Patna, December 16, 2022. Photo: PTI

Kumar has adopted a righteous stance on the issue of compensation, asserting that the ban on liquor was based on Gandhian principles. Therefore, those who consumed hooch had violated these principles and deserve no compensation for their “ganda kaam” (bad acts), the CM said.

Senior BJP leader Sushil Kumar Modi, a former deputy CM and once-trusted lieutenant of Kumar, also visited Saran separately. “The CM had compensated the victims of Gopalganj in 2016 despite prohibition. Now, he says that the liquor ban will be affected by compensating Saran victims. This shows that he is capable of taking a U-turn in every matter,” said the BJP leader, whose party lost power in August this year as a result of Kumar’s volte-face.

Both Paswan and Modi were also livid over Kumar’s repeated “piyoge to maroge” remark, which they described as “highly insensitive”.

Political strategist-turned-activist Prashant Kishor, a former close aide of the Bihar CM, said the remark made him “regret having worked for Nitish Kumar, a man who was once conscientious enough to have resigned as railway minister in the wake of a train accident”.

The CPI(ML)-Liberation, which supports the ‘Mahagathbandhan’ government from the outside, called for “not just compensation but rehabilitation of families” affected by the tragedy. In a statement, the Left party said it will also hit the streets on Monday in protest against the “nexus between liquor mafia and the administrative machinery across the state”.

“Most of the deceased belong to very poor families… The hooch tragedy has destroyed many homes. Its impact has now reached the adjoining district of Siwan,” the statement said.

“The government must show sensitivity and agree to not just pay an ex-gratia but also take the responsibility of treatment of those who have fallen ill after consuming liquor, besides the education of the children of those who have died. It must also set up de-addiction centres so that the scourge of alcoholism may be nipped in the bud,” the statement added.

(With PTI inputs)

Bihar: Nitish and Tejashwi Win Trust Vote; BJP Walks Out

Altogether, 160 MLAs voted in favour of the confidence motion while no vote was cast against it.

New Delhi: The newly-formed Mahagathbandhan government in Bihar on Wednesday, August 24, comfortably won the trust vote amid a walkout staged by BJP MLAs.

The government was formed after Nitish Kumar walked out of his alliance with the BJP and joined hands with Tejashwi Yadav’s Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) a fortnight ago. Earlier in the day, the residences of several RJD leaders were raided by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in connection with the alleged ‘land-for-job’ scam.

On Wednesday, Bihar assembly deputy speaker Maheshwar Hazari ordered a headcount upon a request by Vijay Kumar Chaudhary, the parliamentary affairs minister, who said that though a voice vote had clearly shown support of the majority, the count would leave no room for any confusion.

Altogether, 160 MLAs voted in favour of the confidence motion while no vote was cast against it.

The lone MLA of AIMIM, Akhtarul Iman, whose party is not a part of the ruling alliance, also took part in the exercise and supported the confidence motion.

Some of the BJP MLAs, who had staged a walkout while chief minister Nitish Kumar was delivering his speech, stormed the House demanding that the deputy speaker not waste time on a redundant headcount but take up businesses scheduled for the day and announced a boycott of the proceedings.

Proceedings were, subsequently, adjourned until Friday by the deputy speaker who also informed the House that on Thursday nomination papers will be filed for the election of a new speaker. The post is vacant after BJP’s Vijay Kumar Sinha resigned.

In his speech that lasted for about half an hour, Nitish Kumar made indirect references to the rebellion by LJP’s Chirag Paswan, allegedly at the BJP’s behest, and attempts to cause a split in JD(U) through his former protege R.C.P. Singh.

Kumar asserted that he had “no personal ambitions”, rejecting the BJP’s charge that his latest volte-face was aimed at becoming the prime ministerial candidate of the opposition camp.

He, nonetheless, spoke of his interactions with leaders from across the country whom he has urged to stay united for the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.

The JD(U) leader also recounted his old association with the BJP and underscored the contrast between the current dispensation and the era of Atal Bihari Vajpayee, L.K. Advani and Murli Manohar Joshi.

Without mentioning Prime Minister Narendra Modi by name, he said the current dispensation does little except publicity (prachar prasar).

As the BJP MLAs protested, he added, “Speak against me. Maybe this will earn you some rewards from your political bosses.”

Governments and Alliances Change but Nitish Remains: The Magical Bihar Formula

Kumar has been the modern-day embodiment of the political idiom, ‘Aaya Ram, gaya Ram’. The last three times were about keeping the throne, but this time is about keeping the palace intact.

Bihar has always been at the centre of Indian politics, contributing some of the most powerful national leaders in the last few decades. As the saying goes, there is one thing that comes naturally to the people of Pataliputra – politics.

The art of political warfare has been perfected by many here and over the last two decades, we have seen the most flexible, sharp and ingenious political moves from the Janata Dal (United) [JD(U)] and Nitish Kumar to retain power. This led to the creation of the magic formula of Bihar politics – governments change, alliances change, but Nitish remains.

But this time around, was Kumar parting ways with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) a politically calculated move to stay in power? Or was it a last shot at survival?

Bihar today: when and why?

The 2020 Bihar assembly election result was the biggest shock for Kumar. The JD(U), in its prime in 2010, was able to garner a 23% vote share in the state. But come 2020, the party’s vote share plummeted to 15.8%. The JD(U) was the biggest loser seat-wise as well, as it came down from 71 seats to 43, making it only the third largest party in the state, exactly where the BJP was in the previous election.

The year 2020 was also when the BJP played the ‘Paswan card’ well against the JD(U) and ensured the latter’s defeat in over 20 seats. What happened to the Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) post-2020 also serves as a political lesson that the BJP’s allies should be wary of.

The political insult of once being the commander and then having to play second fiddle had bothered the JD(U) and Kumar and the political assessment that going forward with the alliance would completely eradicate them in 2025 was quite valid. To be honest, what history tells us is that the BJP eats into their allies – the Shiv Sena is only the latest example, not the last.

Also read: Why Nitish Kumar Dumped BJP and What It Means for Opposition Parties

‘Aaya Ram, gaya Ram’

Kumar has been the modern-day embodiment of the political idiom, ‘Aaya Ram, gaya Ram’. The last three times were about keeping the throne, but this time is about keeping the palace intact.

The BJP’s second phase of its expansion plan – kick-started post the national executive meeting in Hyderabad –is focused on weakening the already weak opposition. The effects of this we have already seen in Maharashtra and Goa, and will soon be seen in Gujarat as well.

For Nitish, it was not only about the threat of the BJP infiltrating his party through R.C.P. Singh, even though that’s the public narrative cited, but it’s more about how the BJP has been infiltrating the JD(U)’s vote bank across the state which, in a way, is not tagged to any specific community. It is more about how Kumar’s space in the households of rural Bihar is being replaced by the image of Narendra Damodardas Modi as a ‘saviour’; an even scarier proposition for Kumar and the JD(U).

The second phase of the BJP’s expansion plan is not just focused on capturing power, but on sustaining it; to be unchallenged in the world’s largest democracy.

Alliance with the BJP – a deal with the devil

Political alliances with the BJP have proven detrimental to many of its past allies, from the Shiv Sena to the LJP, and to the AIADMK – the list is quite long. Everyone talks about the Shiv Sena’s betrayal in 2019, but no one seems to remember how the Sena had shrunk under the National Democratic Alliance (NDA); how the BJP has encroached into Sena strongholds and eaten into their target voter groups.

Similarly in Bihar today, we are seeing the latest iteration of this exercise. It was the LJP first and the JD(U) second, but the important question here is: will another Maharashtra happen in Bihar?

The answer is that it’s unlikely. Although Kumar may have saved his throne for the time being and Tejaswi Yadav may have gotten his “Yuvraj” crown, there is a major political aspect they are missing out on. They just made the BJP the primary opposition in the state. For the party that became the ‘big brother’ in the NDA alliance for the first time in 2020, there can be no better political opportunity.

RJD leader Tejaswi Yadav greets his supporters outside Raj Bhavan after being sworn in as deputy chief minister. Photo: PTI.

For the next three years, the BJP is the sole alternative for the people of Bihar and the much-criticised political leadership of Bihar, which has been responsible for its lack of development, have all come together under one banner. Now ask yourself this question again: did Kumar outwit the BJP or did the BJP just get its best political opportunity to finally capture Pataliputra?

Also read: Developments in Bihar Have Made Opposition Politics a Lot More Interesting

What lies ahead for Kumar?

The road ahead for Kumar will definitely be tricky, as the big brother in the alliance, the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) will resort to its form of governance and the ‘golden hat’ of solutions will slowly become an administrative burden.

The logical option for the BJP is to wait and watch, let things take their natural course and, in a way, get public sympathy for being the “betrayed ones”. The BJP’s social media wing is more than capable of generating that feeling and portraying Kumar and the JD(U) as power-hungry opportunists. Who can do it better than the BJP anyway?

The BJP will definitely want to pull off another Shiv Sena-esque coup and they would have already activated a plan involving bargaining with, purchasing of and threatening legislators across the state. If there is any lesson to be learned from Maharashtra, it is that patience and political will is a virtue that you need to admire about the BJP and they will hit you when you least expect it; when they need that political knockdown very badly.

Come 2024, Bihar will be an exciting battle and if history is any indication, it’s Kumar’s last shot at survival.

Subrahmanyan T.D. is national head, Strategy and Research, I-PAC.

Modi’s ‘Broken’ Alliances With Smaller Parties Remind Us of Dhritarashtra’s Embrace

Narendra Modi’s ‘use and discard’ model has left all his long-time allies, including the Akali Dal, PDP, TDP and others, drained and disoriented.

When Narendra Modi formed his first government in 2014, the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) had the support of around two dozen political parties. But within a few years, most of them had deserted him. Among them were valuable supporters such as the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) with 16 MPs. Chandrababu Naidu lamented the fact that the prime minister did not even have time to meet him.

Naidu’s experience truly reflects the use-and-discard treatment meted out to the BJP’s NDA allies since 2014.

Nine parties, including the Shiv Sena, Ram Vilas Paswan’s Lok Janshakti Party (LJP), the Akali Dal, AIADMK, Nitish Kumar’s Janata Dal (United) and minor outfits like Apna Dal, All Jharkhand Students Union had won the 2019 Lok Sabha polls as NDA allies.

The tragedy has been that within two years, major allies like the Shiv Sena, Shiromani Akali Dal and LJP found themselves out of what Steven Levitsky calls the ‘devil’s bargain’. Look at how the JD(U) – badly bruised and humiliated – desperately struggling under the Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) proverbial ‘Dhritarashtra aalingan‘ or embrace.

In his celebrated work How Democracies Die, Steve Levitsky and Daniel Ziblatt devote a full chapter – ‘Useful Alliances’ – to how charismatic strong leaders the world over use smaller parties to establish their hegemony and discard them after use.

They compare the fate of the smaller allies to that of the horse in Aesop’s Fables, who, to settle scores with a stag, ends up as a permanent slave of the hunter. But unlike Aesop’s horse, Modi’s allies were not enslaved but had to leave the NDA jaded and humiliated.

A quarrel had arisen between the Horse and the Stag, so the Horse came to a Hunter to ask his help to take revenge on the Stag. The Hunter agreed but said: “If you desire to conquer the Stag, you must permit me to place this piece of iron between your jaws, so that I may guide you with these reins, and allow this saddle to be placed upon your back so that I may keep steady upon you as we follow the enemy.” The Horse agreed to the conditions, and the Hunter soon saddled and bridled him. Then, with the aid of the Hunter, the Horse soon overcame the Stag and said to the Hunter: “Now get off, and remove those things from my mouth and back”. “Not so fast, friend,” said the Hunter. “I have now got you under bit and spur and prefer to keep you as you are at present.”

– “The Horse, the Stag, and the Hunter,” (Aesop ‘s Fables)

Uddhav Thackeray, leader of Shiv Sena, the BJP’s oldest ally, proved to be a different kind of horse. He threw off the hunter and kicked him squarely. When humiliated, he revolted against Modi, negotiated with anti-BJP parties like the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and Congress and formed the Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi (MVA) with himself as chief minister. Contrary to Amit Shah’s calculations, the MVA government did not collapse.

On the contrary, the stability of the alliance led to a series of defections from the BJP in Maharashtra. Soon after Amit Shah’s visit in February last year, seven BJP councilors quit the party. Then, six BJP corporators defected to the Shiv Sena, and a former Nanded BJP MP quit the saffron party and joined the Congress.

The use-and-discard model

In a frontal attack on Modi in January, Thackeray exposed the BJP’s ‘use and throw’ policy to wrest power. “Remember the days when BJP candidates used to lose deposits in elections? That time they needed us and other regional parties like Akali Dal, TMC… But now these neo-Hindutvavadis are using Hindutva only for their own benefits,” he said, regretting that the Shiv Sena ‘wasted’ 25 years in NDA.

While Thackeray had the guts to hit back before it was too late, look at the pathetic plight of the Akali Dal. Long years of ruthless family rule leading to the desertion of senior leaders, dumping the core Sikh tenets and beliefs accompanied by blind support for Modi brand of politics have thrown the 100-year-old Akali Dal into an existential crisis. The party that fought glorious struggles like the Punjabi suba and peasants movements is now struggling to come in at the fourth or fifth position.

Apart from alienating its core Sikh ranks, the party became unpopular due to its uncritical support to the BJP on the Babri Masjid issue, the reading down of Article 370 and the Citizenship (Amendment) Act. Sikh ranks who were traditionally seeking more powers for the states resented the Badal family’s silent approval to such decisions. More humiliating, the Modi government took the SAD so casually that it was not even consulted before announcing decisions like the three farm Bills. Its minister did not protest when the three Bills came for formal cabinet approval. The party acted only when the entire Sikh peasantry took to the streets. But by then it was too late.

Its dismal performance in the last assembly (2017) and the 2019 Lok Sabha elections and civic polls was a warning to the SAD leaders about the dangers of dining with the devil. The Aam Aadmi Party got more seats (20) in the assembly than Punjab’s grand old party did (18). Things have come to such a pass that fearing public wrath Akali leaders are avoiding visiting rural and semi-urban areas.

People see them as unscrupulous wheeling-dealing politicians whose 10-year rule (2007-2017) pushed the farmers into devastating living conditions. The period was marked by rising corruption, growing drug menace, expansion of the sand and gravel mafia and monopoly control over transport. The SAD was encouraged by the political protection offered by the Modi regime from enforcement agencies.

Also read: LJP Split: An Existential Crisis for Chirag Paswan After His Towering Father’s Death

LJP leader Ram Vilas Paswan had been an enthusiastic acolyte of the Modi regime. He went on defending all divisive initiatives by the NDA until his death in October 2020. But in exchange, what his son Chirag Paswan, who succeeded the father, got was a shabby treatment. Apparently, the BJP had a different game plan for the post-Ram Vilas Paswan Bihar. It wanted to bring the large Paswan base directly under the saffron umbrella.

For this, the young and ambitious Chirag has been an impediment. So they worked out a succession battle, weaned away his uncle Pashupatinath Paras and engineered a split with five of the six LJP MPs recognised as a new group by the Lok Sabha speaker. After a legal battle, the Election Commission also recognised the two sides as separate parties and gave them their own symbols.

Since September last year, there were indications of a change of mind in New Delhi. The original formula of using Pashupatinath seemed to be floundering with Chirag getting huge crowds even in the uncle’s constituency. Local community leaders have gravitated towards the departed leader’s son. The other nightmare is the dangers of a grand alliance between Chirag and Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) scion Tejashwi Yadav.

The BJP’s short-lived coalition with Mufti Mohammad Sayeed’s Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) from March 2015 to June 2018 was a different kind of alliance. Both sides knew the limitations and yet hoped to win brownie points. Mehbooba Mufti was opposed to the coalition but her father hoped that it was worth experimenting with. His hope was that Modi, as a leader who was seen capable of carrying the entire government with him, could initiate a fruitful dialogue with Pakistan and help resolve Kashmir’s problems.

This was a time when Modi was being hailed as a leader who had a solution for every problem. Beijing – relations with which was warming up with successive Xi visits – was taking an interest in India-Pakistan negotiations. But things did not work that way because the BJP wanted to use the PDP alliance to gain a foothold in Kashmir. Thus, from the beginning, tension developed on issues ranging from Article 370 and the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, the Kathua rape and ceasefire with Pakistan. “It was like drinking a cup of poison,” Mehbooba said after she quit the coalition.

Also read: As UP Reeks With the Acrid Smell of Hatred, Bihar Freshens the Communal Atmosphere With Harmony

Nitish’s ‘tense’ relationship with BJP

Nitish Kumar, another ally, presents a classical example of the use-and-discard model Levitsky and Ziblatt write about. When Nitish was anointed as chief minister to checkmate Lalu’s RJD, his JD(U) was the largest single party. As the Dhritarashtra embrace tightened, Nitish’s standing eroded and the BJP gained. Thus, in the 2020 assembly polls, the BJP replaced the JD(U) as the largest single party with 74 MLAs. JD(U) was reduced to 45.

Since then, the state BJP leaders began treating Nitish Kumar as a usurper and weak leader with a rapidly diminishing mass appeal – an ideal scenario to humiliate the victim and further erode his credibility and reputation. As of now, Nitish’s outright ouster may not be on BJP’s agenda. For that will mean the fall of the government, and perhaps, push him to the other side. Instead, the whole effort is to clip the minority chief minister’s powers, undermine his authority and force him to follow the BJP’s political line.

Narendra Modi and Nitish Kumar. Photo: PTI

As an old player, Nitish must know the the perils of being a ‘puppet’ chief minister. BJP ministers, including the deputy chief minister, use every trivial issue to corner him. For this, they have started playing the opposition’s role. Nitish has been seeking special status for Bihar to tide over its backwardness. But his deputy chief minister publicly decried the idea and supported the Union government’s position. “Deputy CM ko kuch bhi nahi pata,” Nitish retorted. And the latter promptly hit back.

A few weeks ago, BJP MLA Haribhushan Thakur and minister Samrat Choudhary asked Nitish to impose a Haryana-like ban on namaz in public places. The assembly speaker from the BJP introduced the singing of the national anthem in the House, much to the chagrin of the chief minister’s camp. BJP leaders are also pressing for an anti-conversion Bill on the lines of those in other BJP-ruled states.

There are sharp differences on the need for a caste census, excise policy and liquor tragedies. BJP’s cultural cell chief Daya Prakash Sinha raised another controversy by equating Emperor Asoka with Aurangzeb. The chief minister’s camp resented this. When a hooch tragedy struck Nalanda, Nitish Kumar’s constituency, BJP was in the forefront of assailing the government’s prohibition policy.

Now, they have stoked a controversy over an order under an existing rule requiring registration of temples in the state. The BJP, along with temple priests, describe it ‘anti-Hindu’. Another demand is for a blanket ban on madrasas. The idea was put forward by the BJP after a powerful blast took place in a madrasa in Banka district.

The kind of tension in the relationship is best illustrated by state president Sanjay Jaiswal who warned the chief minister that the ‘76 lakh BJP workers know how to give a befitting reply’. Nitish Kumar’s current ordeals should be a warning to all those parties that still hope to gain something from an alliance with the BJP.

P. Raman covered politics for national dailies since 1978 and is the author of Strong Leader Populism: How Modi’s Hybrid Regime Model is Reshaping India’s Political Narrative, Ecosystem and Symbols.