LIVE | ‘Will stay together’: Nitish after taking oath as Bihar CM in NDA fold

Congress leader Jairam Ramesh on Sunday criticised Nitish Kumar’s latest volte-face, branding him as an “expert in betraying”, and emphasised the irony of his decision to join the BJP-led NDA camp after being instrumental in conceptualising the opposition bloc INDIA.

Kumar on Sunday resigned as the Chief Minister of Bihar, saying “things were not working well” for him in the Mahagathbandhan he had joined less than 18 months ago and the opposition bloc INDIA.

Ramesh remarked that Kumar’s tendency to change political colours rivals that of chameleons and suggested that the political upheaval in Bihar is a tactic to divert attention from the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra, scheduled to enter Bihar on Monday.

“The resignation of Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar is not at all surprising because he has been changing political colours from time to time. And in changing colours, he is giving tough competition to the chameleons. The people of Bihar will give a befitting reply to him and also to those people in Delhi who are behind it,” he said at a press conference.

Ramesh said it is clear that a “political drama” is being created by the BJP to divert attention from the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra. “I had worked with him from close quarters when I was a minister. He is an expert in betraying,” he said.

Ramesh dismissed claims that Kumar's exit would weaken the opposition bloc INDIA, asserting that the bloc would only be strengthened, as affirmed by TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee.

“It will have no impact except headlines for a few days. The future of our country, India, is at stake if the BJP continues. But the future of the opposition bloc, INDIA, is not at stake,” he said.

Highlighting Kumar’s previous involvement in the opposition bloc INDIA, Ramesh recalled the meeting of 18 opposition parties convened by Kumar on June 23 of the previous year.

“The journey of the INDIA bloc started from Patna on June 23 and the person who was instrumental in starting this journey has betrayed it. We don’t know what his political compulsions were, but the people of Bihar will give him and the BJP a befitting reply,” he said.

This marks the second instance of Kumar's political volte-face in less than 18 months, following his departure from the BJP and subsequent alliance with the RJD-Congress combine. (PTI)

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar’s exit from the Mahagathbandhan alliance and consequently the INDIA bloc to align with the BJP is a “loss” for the saffron party and a “gain” for the Opposition alliance, Tamil Nadu’s ruling DMK said on Sunday.

Reacting to JD(U) president and Chief Minister Nitish Kumar’s move, which is being seen as a body blow to the INDIA alliance, DMK spokesperson J Constandine Ravindran said, “People will never accept this act of betrayal.”

Ravindran told PTI: “Though Kumar is a veteran leader in Bihar, he has completely lost credibility. He has no integrity. Integrity and credibility are very important for a leader.”

Furthermore, he said: “Nitish Kumar leaving the INDIA bloc is a gain for us (opposition alliance) and it is a loss for the BJP. People will teach a lesson to Nitish Kumar at the right time.”

The JD(U) chief is shifting loyalties for the fifth time, Ravindran said, adding that Kumar had joined the Mahagathbandhan in Bihar only in August 2022.

(With agency inputs)

The TMC on Sunday slammed JD(U) president Nitish Kumar for his “repeated political somersaults” after he dumped the Mahagathbandhan in Bihar, and asserted that people will respond fittingly to such “opportunism”.

“Nitish Kumar is known for his political somersaults at regular intervals. It is unfortunate that he has decided to quit the Opposition grouping INDIA and is likely to join the NDA. The people will give a befitting reply to such political opportunism,” Trinamool Congress MP Sougata Roy said.

Asked about the impact of JD(U)’s exit from the bloc, Roy said it does not come as a jolt for the alliance. “It is not good politically if an ally leaves you. But such things do happen in politics, people come and go. So, it is not a jolt,” he said.

Another TMC leader, speaking on the condition of anonymity, expressed concerns over Kumar’s political reliability. “TMC was always apprehensive of his credibility because of his history of somersaults. But the Congress considered Kumar to be a very credible partner,” the leader remarked.

Echoing a similar sentiment, TMC minister Firhad Hakim exuded confidence in the opposition bloc’s ability to defeat the BJP in the upcoming Lok Sabha polls.

“People are watching everything. If you try to disregard the people’s mandate because of your own political opportunism, you will get a befitting reply in a democracy. Mamata Banerjee is one of the architects of the opposition alliance, and it will defeat the BJP in the Parliamentary elections,” Hakim asserted.

Banerjee, the TMC supremo and chief minister of West Bengal, had recently announced that her party will go solo in Bengal, amid an impasse over seat-sharing with the Congress.

(With agency inputs)