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(Pi Bureau)
Patna : Nitish Kumar has won the crucial floor test in Bihar Assembly with 131 votes for and 108 against the motion.
Bihar Speaker calls for lobby division to test the strength of the Nitish Kumar government. MLAs will have to sign a register for or against the confidence motion.
The RJD had requested a “conscience vote,” a secret ballot in which legislators are not bound by orders to vote for their party, which has been rejected.
‘Secularism Can’t Mask Corruption,” Nitish Kumar said in the assembly, adding, “These are arrogant people. Political parties get a mandate in elections to serve the people…the people were fed-up.” His former partners the RJD and Congress say their alliance got a massive mandate in the assembly elections on an anti-BJP plank and so Mr Kumar’s decision to partner with the BJP is unethical.
Lalu Yadav’s son Tejashwi Yadav, now Leader of Opposition, spoke for 40 minutes, attacking his former boss saying, (Aren’t you ashamed?).” The 28-year-old, who was Nitish Kumar’s deputy till Wednesday morning accused Mr Kumar and the BJP of “opportunism.”
The BJP’s Sushil Modi too hit back saying the “mandate was not for corruption.”
This morning the RJD has moved court challenging the appointment of Nitish Kumar as Chief Minister. The court has admitted the petition but refused to stop the trust vote, saying it would hear the case on Monday.
The RJD contends that as the largest party in the Bihar assembly it should have been given first chance at forming government after Nitish Kumar resigned.
On Wednesday, hours after Lalu Yadav said his son Tejashwi would not resign over corruption charges, Nitish Kumar met the Bihar Governor and resigned as Chief Minister ending his two-year-old alliance with the RJD and Congress.
The BJP was waiting with an offer of support and they met the Governor the same night to stake claim to form government. Nitish Kumar took oath for the sixth time yesterday as Chief Minister and the BJP’s Sushil Modi was sworn in as Deputy Chief Minister.
“I took the decision to form the new government in the interest of Bihar… I am committed to the development of Bihar,” Mr Kumar told reporters shortly after taking oath. “I am confident that the pace of progress of the state will gain fresh momentum with assistance from the Centre.” Only the chief minister and his deputy took oath on Thursday. The rest of the ministers will be sworn in after today’s trust vote.
Nitish Kumar had ended his 17-year alliance with the BJP in 2013 over its decision to name Narendra Modi its Prime Ministerial candidate. In 2015 he partnered with the Congress and Lalu Yadav to win the assembly elections. But in recent months, he had broken ranks with the opposition to support several initiatives of PM Modi, including demonetisation and the candidacy of Ram Nath Kovind for the post of the President.
