Patna: State PHED minister and LJP(RV) leader Sanjay Singh on Thursday said the Congress was likely to split in the state after Makar Sankranti, claiming that all its six MLAs were in touch with NDA leaders.Two of the six Congress MLAs — Surendra Prasad and Abhishek Ranjan — skipped the party meeting on ‘MGNREGA Bachao Sangram’ on Thursday. The remaining four MLAs — Manoj Bishwas, Abidur Rahman, Qamrul Hoda and Manohar Prasad — were present at the meeting.
Lakhendra Paswan, a minister from the BJP quota, also claimed that the Congress MLAs would join the NDA at the earliest. He said they were waiting for kharmas to end, as the period is not considered auspicious for major political moves.“They have certain demands. If met, all the six Congress MLAs will come to the NDA fold. There has been disenchantment in Congress against its leadership. It was evident in Madhubani when Congressmen fought among themselves in the presence of the party chief,” Sanjay told this newspaper. He also met CM Nitish Kumar but did not disclose which party the Congress MLAs were more inclined towards.JD(U) and BJP leaders backed Sanjay’s statement while Congress’s state media committee chairman Rajesh Rathorre took a dig at the LJP(RV) MLA from Mahua. He said CM Nitish Kumar has a track record since 2010 of not staying in an alliance for more than two years after winning elections.RJD spokesperson Mritunjay Tiwari said despite winning 202 seats in the assembly elections, the NDA appeared restless. “It shows that all is not well in the NDA,” he said.Senior Congress leader Shakeel Ahmad Khan also hinted at changing political equations, saying the party would chart its own course away from the RJD. This indicated a possible split in the opposition Mahagathbandhan led by the RJD, which has been reduced to just 25 MLAs. However, Khan criticised the BJP, alleging that it was known for its “unethical practices” and was unnecessarily creating such an atmosphere.With cabinet expansion expected after Makar Sankranti on Jan 14 and 10 ministerial berths still vacant, speculation has intensified about possible defections. The BJP is the single largest party with 89 MLAs, followed by the JD(U) with 85. If even four Congress MLAs join the JD(U), it would reach parity with the BJP in the Bihar assembly. AIMIM has five MLAs while speculation is also rife that three of the four Rashtriya Lok Morcha MLAs of former Union minister Upendra Kushwaha may desert him but remain within the NDA fold. This could bring back the “big brother” factor between the BJP and the JD(U). The BSP also has a single MLA.JD(U) spokesperson Neeraj Kumar said Congress and RJD MLAs realise that the people of Bihar trust only CM Nitish Kumar. Therefore, it was natural that there was talk of major political developments after kharmas, he said.NDA leaders have also claimed that there would be a split in the RJD led by Lalu Prasad. BJP and JD(U) leaders recently said that RJD MLAs were also restless and in touch with their leaders.
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