Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar on Monday met Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union home minister Amit Shah during his first visit to Delhi after the NDA’s landslide victory in last month’s Assembly elections.
Officially described as courtesy calls to discuss the implementation of the alliance’s poll promises, the meetings took place against the backdrop of a controversy over Nitish pulling down a young woman’s hijab that has reinforced questions about the chief minister’s mental acuity.
Besides, there are growing rumblings within the NDA over the likely distribution of the Rajya Sabha seats that will fall vacant next year.
Nitish was accompanied at both meetings by BJP leader and deputy chief minister Samrat Choudhary and Union fisheries minister and JDU leader Rajiv Ranjan aka Lallan Singh, lending weight to speculation that political issues too were discussed alongside governance matters.
A post on X from Choudhary said: “Under the guidance and leadership of the esteemed Modi ji, the country and Bihar are continuously wprogressing. During this interaction, valuable guidance was also received on the goals of a developed Bihar.”
There was, however, no post about the meetings on the chief minister’s X timeline till late evening.
Shah posted: “Under the leadership of Modi ji and Nitish ji, the NDA government is committed to taking public welfare and good governance in the state to even greater heights.”
Union Home Minister Amit Shah with Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar during a meeting, in New Delhi. PTI
Nitish, 74, had pulled down the veil of a Muslim woman doctor while handing her an appointment letter in Patna last week. The doctor, Nusrat Parveen, has not joined duty, for which the last date passed on Saturday, her family saying this was because she was upset at what happened.
Despite criticism from Opposition parties and Muslim leaders, who have demanded an apology, Nitish has so far been silent on the subject.
BJP insiders said the chief minister’s meeting with Shah featured discussions on next year’s elections to five Rajya Sabha seats from Bihar, a subject that has already generated unease within the alliance.
Bihar NDA ally Hindustani Awam Morcha (Secular), led by Union micro, small and medium enterprises minister Jitan Ram Manjhi, has publicly threatened to quit the central ministry if it is denied a Rajya Sabha berth.
“During the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, my party was promised two Lok Sabha seats and one Rajya Sabha berth. However, we were given only one Lok Sabha seat, which we won,” Manjhi told party leaders in Bihar on Sunday.
“I am grateful to Prime Minister Modi for making me a Union minister, but the promise of a Rajya Sabha berth remains unfulfilled.”
Claiming he had learnt that none of the five seats would come to his party, Manjhi added: “For the sake of the party, we may have to give up our desire for ministries at the Centre and in the state.”
Of the five seats due to fall vacant, the NDA holds three and the RJD, two. Following the NDA’s landslide victory in the Assembly elections, the ruling alliance is expected to win all five seats.
Chirag Paswan’s Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) is learnt to be lobbying for a Rajya Sabha berth for his mother, and sources said the BJP had agreed.
The remaining four seats are expected to be split equally between the BJP and the JDU. Newly appointed BJP national working president Nitin Nabin is likely to be sent to the Rajya Sabha from Bihar.