News Analysis India

Tag: Upendra Kushwaha

  • Upendra Kushwaha is free to leave JD(U), says Bihar CM Nitish Kumar

    Express News Service

    PATNA: Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar said on Monday that rebel JD(U) parliamentary board chairman Upendra Kushwaha is free to leave the party and go anywhere he wishes.

    Talking to media persons during his ongoing ‘Samadhan Yatra’, Nitish said that if somebody comes to the party and then decides to leave, then he is free to leave the party at his will.

    Nitish’s reaction comes ahead of Kushwaha’s two-day party workers’ meeting in Patna on February 19 and 20. On Sunday, Kushwaha had written an open letter to workers inviting them to meet to discuss the ‘existing situation’ in JD(U). He alleged in the letter that the party was getting weakened due to internal factors.

    Toeing similar lines, JD(U) national president and MP Rajiv Ranjan Singh aka Lalan Singh said that Kushwaha was no longer holding the post of the party’s parliamentary board chairman. “Kushwaha is not holding any party post,” remarked Singh, dropping ample hints that there was no possibility of any rapprochement between Kushwaha and the party’s top leadership.

    ALSO READ | ‘Will leave JD(U) only after getting my share in party’: Kushwaha brings up Nitish’s claim in 1994

    Though there has not been any formal announcement about Kushwaha losing his party post, Singh’s remark shows the party’s top leadership has made up its mind for a final showdown with Kushwaha sooner than later.

    Singh also accused Kushwaha of provoking workers against the party leadership. He said that the party had given him full respect but now he was working against it.

    Earlier Nitish had said, “I promoted Kushwaha by making him an MLA but he left the party. When he re-joined the party, I made him a Rajya Sabha member but he again left the party. Now he has returned to the party for the third time but I do not know what has happened in the last two months. I have been asking to talk to him but he is not doing so for reasons best known to him.”

    Making an oblique reference to the BJP, Nitish said that Kushwaha had adopted such an aggressive approach that he was getting support from the saffron party. “If somebody is speaking against me every day, it only hints that he has struck a deal with the other party (BJP),” he claimed.

    State JD(U) president Umesh Kushwaha alleged that Upendra Kushwaha had entered into a deal with another party and was talking about saving the party.

    Reacting to Kushwaha’s two-day workers’ meeting, the leader of opposition in the legislative council Samrat Chaudhary said, “The BJP had nothing to do with the Kushwaha episode. It’s an internal matter of the JD(U). But he (Kushwaha) should be given his share for which he is asking.” 

    PATNA: Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar said on Monday that rebel JD(U) parliamentary board chairman Upendra Kushwaha is free to leave the party and go anywhere he wishes.

    Talking to media persons during his ongoing ‘Samadhan Yatra’, Nitish said that if somebody comes to the party and then decides to leave, then he is free to leave the party at his will.

    Nitish’s reaction comes ahead of Kushwaha’s two-day party workers’ meeting in Patna on February 19 and 20. On Sunday, Kushwaha had written an open letter to workers inviting them to meet to discuss the ‘existing situation’ in JD(U). He alleged in the letter that the party was getting weakened due to internal factors.

    Toeing similar lines, JD(U) national president and MP Rajiv Ranjan Singh aka Lalan Singh said that Kushwaha was no longer holding the post of the party’s parliamentary board chairman. “Kushwaha is not holding any party post,” remarked Singh, dropping ample hints that there was no possibility of any rapprochement between Kushwaha and the party’s top leadership.

    ALSO READ | ‘Will leave JD(U) only after getting my share in party’: Kushwaha brings up Nitish’s claim in 1994

    Though there has not been any formal announcement about Kushwaha losing his party post, Singh’s remark shows the party’s top leadership has made up its mind for a final showdown with Kushwaha sooner than later.

    Singh also accused Kushwaha of provoking workers against the party leadership. He said that the party had given him full respect but now he was working against it.

    Earlier Nitish had said, “I promoted Kushwaha by making him an MLA but he left the party. When he re-joined the party, I made him a Rajya Sabha member but he again left the party. Now he has returned to the party for the third time but I do not know what has happened in the last two months. I have been asking to talk to him but he is not doing so for reasons best known to him.”

    Making an oblique reference to the BJP, Nitish said that Kushwaha had adopted such an aggressive approach that he was getting support from the saffron party. “If somebody is speaking against me every day, it only hints that he has struck a deal with the other party (BJP),” he claimed.

    State JD(U) president Umesh Kushwaha alleged that Upendra Kushwaha had entered into a deal with another party and was talking about saving the party.

    Reacting to Kushwaha’s two-day workers’ meeting, the leader of opposition in the legislative council Samrat Chaudhary said, “The BJP had nothing to do with the Kushwaha episode. It’s an internal matter of the JD(U). But he (Kushwaha) should be given his share for which he is asking.” 

  • ‘Will leave JD(U) only after getting my share in party’: Kushwaha brings up Nitish’s claim in 1994

    Express News Service

    PATNA: JD(U) parliamentary board chairman Upendra Kushwaha on Tuesday clarified what Nitish Kumar had demanded from then Janata Dal leader and chief minister Lalu Prasad at a rally in Patna in undivided Bihar in 1994.

    Referring to a rally organised at Gandhi Maidan in Patna on February 12, 1994, Kushwaha said that Nitish had demanded his share in Janata Dal from Lalu Prasad, which led to defection in the party.

    Kushwaha then said that he was also asking for the same. Talking to reporters, Kushwaha said that he will leave JD(U) only after he was given his share in the party.

    Kushwaha’s reaction came a day after JD(U) state president Umesh Kushwaha demanded resignation from the former. Umesh, who has been given another term at the behest of national president Rajiv Ranjan Singh alias Lalan Singh, said that Upendra Kushwaha should resign if he has an iota of morality in him.

    JD(U) parliamentary board chairman said that he has great respect for Nitish but what is a matter of concern is that he is not taking decisions on his own rather he relies more on others. “If you don’t interfere in the matter immediately and set things right, there are more chances of a split in the JD(U),” he added.

    ALSO READ | Kushwaha says won’t quit even if CM asks him

    He alleged that he was never given any proper place in the organisation and even his suggestions as parliamentary board chairman were ignored by top leadership.

    “I have no power to appoint any member in the parliamentary board despite the fact that I happen to be its chairman. I was, in fact, handed over a lollypop and made MLC,” he added.

    Alleging that Other Backward Classes (OBCs) were not given due representation in the party, Kushwaha said that people from the category were feeling neglected as there was none to take care of them. “I don’t say that people from OBC are not in the party but they as ministers, MLAs, MLCs or MPs were confined to their own constituencies and find little time for others,” he asserted.

    ALSO READ | Nitish Kumar refutes claims by Kushwaha over party getting weak

    Notably, Samata Party was formed in 1994 after the split of the Janata Dal and late George Fernandes made president. Samata Party contested assembly polls in 1995 but failed to perform on expected lines.

    Later, more break-way factions emerged in the old Janata Dal. In July 1997 Rashtriya Janata Dal was formed by Lalu Prasad.

    PATNA: JD(U) parliamentary board chairman Upendra Kushwaha on Tuesday clarified what Nitish Kumar had demanded from then Janata Dal leader and chief minister Lalu Prasad at a rally in Patna in undivided Bihar in 1994.

    Referring to a rally organised at Gandhi Maidan in Patna on February 12, 1994, Kushwaha said that Nitish had demanded his share in Janata Dal from Lalu Prasad, which led to defection in the party.

    Kushwaha then said that he was also asking for the same. Talking to reporters, Kushwaha said that he will leave JD(U) only after he was given his share in the party.

    Kushwaha’s reaction came a day after JD(U) state president Umesh Kushwaha demanded resignation from the former. Umesh, who has been given another term at the behest of national president Rajiv Ranjan Singh alias Lalan Singh, said that Upendra Kushwaha should resign if he has an iota of morality in him.

    JD(U) parliamentary board chairman said that he has great respect for Nitish but what is a matter of concern is that he is not taking decisions on his own rather he relies more on others. “If you don’t interfere in the matter immediately and set things right, there are more chances of a split in the JD(U),” he added.

    ALSO READ | Kushwaha says won’t quit even if CM asks him

    He alleged that he was never given any proper place in the organisation and even his suggestions as parliamentary board chairman were ignored by top leadership.

    “I have no power to appoint any member in the parliamentary board despite the fact that I happen to be its chairman. I was, in fact, handed over a lollypop and made MLC,” he added.

    Alleging that Other Backward Classes (OBCs) were not given due representation in the party, Kushwaha said that people from the category were feeling neglected as there was none to take care of them. “I don’t say that people from OBC are not in the party but they as ministers, MLAs, MLCs or MPs were confined to their own constituencies and find little time for others,” he asserted.

    ALSO READ | Nitish Kumar refutes claims by Kushwaha over party getting weak

    Notably, Samata Party was formed in 1994 after the split of the Janata Dal and late George Fernandes made president. Samata Party contested assembly polls in 1995 but failed to perform on expected lines.

    Later, more break-way factions emerged in the old Janata Dal. In July 1997 Rashtriya Janata Dal was formed by Lalu Prasad.

  • ‘Misleading news’: Kushwaha debunks speculations of disgruntlement over missing Bihar Cabinet berth

    By PTI

    PATNA: JD(U) parliamentary board president Upendra Kushwaha, who has been away since before a new cabinet was sworn in Bihar, on Saturday debunked speculations that he was disgruntled over non-induction in the council of ministers.

    The former union minister came out with a Facebook post, asserting that he was on a “mission” to save the socialist ideology and has been one who “gave up a post” when retaining it became untenable with his principles.

    “I beg all those who are guessing that I am angry, without bothering to cross-check with me, please have mercy on me,” said Kushwaha, who had emerged as arguably the most combative leader of his party when it was caught in a tussle with former ally BJP, that ultimately led to its exit from the NDA.

    Kushwaha, who has been in Delhi for more than a week, expressed anguish over “misleading news reports” which suggested that he was in a sulk over not having been considered for a plum post in the new “Mahagathbandhan” government.

    The new government comprises the RJD and the Congress and is being supported by the Left from outside.

    “People should know that I have never expressed anguish over not getting a post. Rather, I have given up my post when I have been anguished,” he said.

    Kushwaha was a minister of state in the first government headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi from the quota of Rashtriya Lok Samata Party, then a BJP ally.

    “There was a conspiracy to finish off the political ideology in which I believe. To prevent that from happening, I had merged my party with the JD(U) last year. All my associates were of the unanimous view that Nitish Kumar, who has a clean image, is experienced and diligent, was capable of leading our mission to save the ideology,” Kushwaha said.

    “I wish to declare that I consider it my Dharma to work for party organisation,” said the JD(U) leader who was rewarded with a berth in the state legislative council soon after the merger.

    An associate of Nitish Kumar since the Samata Party days, Kushwaha has, however, fought and parted ways with his mentor on more than one occasion in a political career spanning over three decades.

    PATNA: JD(U) parliamentary board president Upendra Kushwaha, who has been away since before a new cabinet was sworn in Bihar, on Saturday debunked speculations that he was disgruntled over non-induction in the council of ministers.

    The former union minister came out with a Facebook post, asserting that he was on a “mission” to save the socialist ideology and has been one who “gave up a post” when retaining it became untenable with his principles.

    “I beg all those who are guessing that I am angry, without bothering to cross-check with me, please have mercy on me,” said Kushwaha, who had emerged as arguably the most combative leader of his party when it was caught in a tussle with former ally BJP, that ultimately led to its exit from the NDA.

    Kushwaha, who has been in Delhi for more than a week, expressed anguish over “misleading news reports” which suggested that he was in a sulk over not having been considered for a plum post in the new “Mahagathbandhan” government.

    The new government comprises the RJD and the Congress and is being supported by the Left from outside.

    “People should know that I have never expressed anguish over not getting a post. Rather, I have given up my post when I have been anguished,” he said.

    Kushwaha was a minister of state in the first government headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi from the quota of Rashtriya Lok Samata Party, then a BJP ally.

    “There was a conspiracy to finish off the political ideology in which I believe. To prevent that from happening, I had merged my party with the JD(U) last year. All my associates were of the unanimous view that Nitish Kumar, who has a clean image, is experienced and diligent, was capable of leading our mission to save the ideology,” Kushwaha said.

    “I wish to declare that I consider it my Dharma to work for party organisation,” said the JD(U) leader who was rewarded with a berth in the state legislative council soon after the merger.

    An associate of Nitish Kumar since the Samata Party days, Kushwaha has, however, fought and parted ways with his mentor on more than one occasion in a political career spanning over three decades.

  • Kushwaha mocks BJP’s attempt to woo OBCs by holding Asoka Jayanti

    By PTI

    PATNA: Upendra Kushwaha, a key political aide of Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, on Saturday mocked the attempts of ally BJP to win over a section of OBCs by celebrating the birth anniversary of Emperor Asoka, and also for claiming credit over its declaration as public holiday in the state.

    “I was amazed to hear yesterday that a political party was claiming that its initiative had led our leader Nitish Kumar to declare Asoka Jayanti a public holiday. It should be remembered that the declaration was made in 2015 when the JD(U) was not aligned with the BJP,” he said at a programme organised by his party to celebrate the birth anniversary of the 3rd century BC ruler who has become a cultural icon for the OBCs, especially his own caste, the Koeris.

    Kushwaha, the parliamentary board chief of the JD(U), was alluding to the speech made by former deputy CM Sushil Kumar Modi on Friday, at a function organised by the BJP to celebrate Asoka Jayanti.

    The senior BJP leader had underscored that Asoka Jayanti became a public holiday following the BJP’s initiative (Bhaajpa ki pahal se).

    Notably, Kumar had snapped ties with the BJP in 2013 when it became apparent that the party will elevate Narendra Modi, his then Gujarat counterpart, as the prime ministerial candidate.

    The Bihar chief minister returned to the NDA four years later.

    Kushwaha, who has been in news for using alleged denigration of Asoka as a stick to beat his ally with, cautioned people against forgetting the “insults” made to the legacy of the ancient historical figure and “becoming flag bearers” of the BJP.

    The JD(U) leader had in the past criticised a playwright for comparing the Maurya dynasty ruler to Mughal emperor Aurangzeb, and also the Delhi Police, controlled by the Union Home Ministry, for giving up the ‘Ashok Stambh’ as its emblem.

    Kushwaha, who merged his RLSP with the JD(U) last year, also recounted the BJP’s change in stance over the issue of caste census which the OBCs hold dear and on which his party and the opposition seem to be on the same page.

    “In 2018, when I was myself in the Union council of ministers, a senior member of the cabinet had said that the government was committed to holding a caste census. I do not want to name the leader but his party has gone back on its promise,” said Kushwaha.

    He alleged that the BJP’s show of reverence for Asoka on the previous day was “necessitated by our steadfast fight against attempts to belittle the legacy of our icon”.

    He also reiterated the need for introducing reservations in the higher judiciary, alleging “it is rare to see a Dalit or an OBC become a judge of a high court or the Supreme Court”.

    “Things have come to such a pass that now even a poor Brahmin or Rajput cannot dream of becoming a judge in the higher courts. They have such a closed system of recruitment,” alleged Kushwaha.

    Meanwhile, state BJP spokesman Ram Sagar Singh hit back asserting that his party’s reverence for Asoka was “asli” (original) while others were being “nakli” (copycats).

  • JDU to contest UP polls, may go it alone if BJP not ready for truck

    By PTI

    PATNA: Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar’s JD(U) on Thursday made it clear that it sought to contest assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh where it would prefer to have a truck with BJP though if that did not materialise, it would not shy away from going it alone.

    The party’s parliamentary board chief Upendra Kushwaha made an averment to this effect in response to questions from journalists about the JD(U)’s plans in UP where assembly polls are due early next year.

    “Undoubtedly we are going to fight there. Of course, we would prefer to do so in alliance with the BJP. Though if that does not materialise, we may choose to go it alone,” Kushwaha said.

    The BJP, which is a partner in the ruling coalition in Bihar, heads the government in the neighbouring state where it won a landslide victory five years ago.

    Home to 80 Lok Sabha seats, UP has been witness to stupendous performances by the BJP in 2014 and 2019 and the saffron party, under the leadership of Yogi Adityanath, needs to register yet another emphatic win next year to build the tempo ahead of the all-important general elections in 2024.

    The JD(U), although a BJP partner in Bihar and nationally, has charted a different course in other states.

    It had fought against the saffron party in the latter’s strongholds like Gujarat, without making much impact.

    It achieved some success in Arunachal Pradesh, becoming the main opposition party though the BJP, which came to power, recently weaned away many JD(U) MLAs leaving the party weak in the northeastern state.

    In UP, the JD(U) has experimented with many alliances, including one with Apna Dal, then headed by its founder Sone Lal Patel whose daughter Anupriya now leads one of its factions and is a minister in the Narendra Modi government at the Centre.

    Kushwaha was also asked about the JD(U)’s prospects in by-polls to two assembly seats in Bihar due next month.

    “We face no challenge. Both Kusheshwar Asthan and Tarapur were our seats and fell vacant upon sad demise of the incumbents. Our victory is certain. We are only trying to ensure that the margin is big,” asserted Kushwaha who returned to the JD(U) earlier this year, merging the RLSP that he had floated in 2013 after parting ways.

    Kushwaha, who had served as a Union minister while he was heading the RLSP, was also asked about the state’s poor ranking in the Niti Aayog report on sustainable development goals, which have come as an embarrassment in the face of Nitish Kumar government’s claims of good governance besides bringing fresh spotlight on the need for special incentives to the state.

    “Indeed, Bihar needs special assistance. The Centre must grant that. It may give it whatever name it likes to give to the help,” said Kushwaha referring to the JD(U)’s persistent demands for special category status which the Union government has been turning down on technical grounds.

    “As far as low ranking is concerned, do not go much by that. Rankings are based on statistics. Having seen the functioning of governments at close quarters, I can assure you that figures rarely do justice to the picture on the ground,” he added.

  • Sharad Yadav to return to JD-U? Party in bid to bring back former leaders

    Express News Service

    PATNA: In the wake of the debacle in Bihar’s legislative polls last year, the Janata Dal (United) is now working towards bringing back senior politicians who had left the party a few years back.

    After Upendra Kushwaha’s return to JD-U with the merger of his party-RLSP, the party is reportedly convincing veteran socialist leader and ex-national president of JD-U, Sharad Yadav, to return to the fold as well.

    Speculations are rife in that Yadav has been requested through Upendra Kushwaha during his recent visit to Yadav’s Delhi residence, as an emissary of CM Nitish Kumar to bury the hatchet and return to JD-U.

    Currently, Sharad Yadav heads his own party, the Loktantrick Janata Dal, which he launched in 2018 after parting ways with the JD-U.

    He was the national president of JD-U from its formation year in 2003 till 2016.

    Yadav was elected to the Lok Sabha for the first time in 1974 from Jabalpur in a by-election in Madhya Pradesh and has since continued to actively participate in parliamentary politics from various Lok Sabha seats, including Madhepura in Bihar from 1991 to 2009.

    His daughter, Subhashini Raj Rao, had contested the 2020 assembly elections on a Congress ticket from Bihariganj seat in Madhepura.

    JD-U’s think tank has formulated a policy to welcome back veterans as a measure to strengthen the party’s position in the national sphere.

    However, it is being said that Sharad Yadav has not yet agreed to return and has asked for some time. Prior to meeting Kushwaha, Yadav had also met RJD chief Lalu Prasad Yadav in Delhi.

    Political experts opine that Sharad Yadav’s return could bear significant results for the JD-U, at a time when former Haryana CM Om Prakash Chautala is said to be working towards establishing a third front in the country.

    “In such a situation, if Sharad Yadav agrees to return to JD-U, his political experiences may prove very conducive to the JD-U to emerge a stronger party in national politics. Yadav is considered to be an influential leader to polarise the leaders of other like-minded parties for one platform,” a Patna based political expert said.

    If Sharad Yadav returns to JD-U, it will help the party emerge as a strong national one ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. His return is also deemed important amid demands from JD-U leaders for projecting Nitish Kumar as the party’s PM face, a reliable party source added.

  • If Nitish Kumar were to become PM, numbers won’t be a problem: JDU leader Upendra Kushwaha

    By PTI

    PATNA: Reiterating that Nitish Kumar was “Prime Minister material”, the JDU on Monday asserted it was not staking claim to the highest seat of power for the Bihar chief minister but “numbers” would be no problem if such a situation arose.

    A statement to the effect was made by the party’s parliamentary board chief Upendra Kushwaha, who testily brushed aside remarks by some leaders in the state BJP that one needed the support of 272 MPs to become the PM, and that the JDU was unlikely to win as many seats on its own.

    “Kyun nahin ho sakta hai (why not)?” was Kushwaha’s curt reply when asked if Kumar were to aim for the top post, would he be able to muster the requisite number in view of the limited reach of the JD(U), which has little presence outside Bihar.

    The former Union minister, however, hastened to add “we are not making a claim to the PM’s post at present. We are with the NDA and acknowledge the leadership of Narendra Modi. But, if people talk about a hypothetical future, then nothing can be dismissed as impossible”.

    Kushwaha had rekindled sentiments about Kumar being “PM material” a few weeks ago and the chorus got louder on the previous day when “Mission Nitish” became the rallying cry at the JDU national council meeting here.

    One of the resolutions passed on the occasion asserted that though not a claimant to the top post, the leader had all the qualities for the same. “When I first spoke about Nitish Kumar being PM material, many of you scoffed at me. Now you can see’ it has happened often that I say something and it becomes a widespread sentiment later on,” Kushwaha said with a mischievous smile, referring to Sunday’s happenings.

    The idea of Kumar fitting the bill first gained currency about a decade ago and following his radical move of snapping ties with the BJP in 2013, he was widely seen as a “secular alternative” to the juggernaut unleashed by Narendra Modi.

    The JDU de facto leader had, however, sought to make light of the utterances of Kushwaha who had parted ways seven years ago to float the RLSP, but returned to the parent party a few months ago merging his outfit into it.

    On Sunday, too, the chief minister refused to reply to queries of journalists who were eager to know his take on the party’s projection of him as a veritable cult figure. Kushwaha was also asked about the need for a coordination committee in the NDA, which was stressed by JDU national general secretary K C Tyagi on the previous day.

    “I met Tyagi ji at my residence this morning. The demand is right. There is a need for better coordination,” said Kushwaha, whose reinduction into the JD(U) is being seen as Kumar’s bid to consolidate his Kurmi-Koeri base following the party’s poor show in the assembly polls.

    “It is true that we are sharing power with the BJP for so many years. Yet, it does not look good when different people in the same party speak in different voices. Caste census is a case in point,” remarked Kushwaha, who had recently sought to underscore “internal conflict” within the saffron party on the issue.

    Second only to the BJP, in the NDA in Parliament, in terms of numerical strength, the JD(U) has created ripples by forcefully taking up the issue of non-inclusion of OBCs in the census, after the Centre disclosed that it proposed to enumerate only the SCs and the STs.

    The CM had recently met the PM, heading a delegation comprising legislators of all parties in the state with the plea that the Centre consider their request.

    The JDU national council meet, among other things, had also resolved to rally other states for the caste census demand, which has so far been most vociferous in Bihar where the OBCs have dominated the political scene for close to three decades.

  • Rift wide open in JD-U as key leaders skip event to welcome Union minister

    Express News Service

    PATNA:  Factionalism surfaced within the ruling JD-U on Monday during an event organised to mark the arrival of the Union Steel Minister and the party’s senior leader RCP Singh in Patna. Upendra Kushwaha, president of the JD-U parliamentary board and newly elected national president of party Rajiv Ranjan alias Lalan Singh, were absent at the party function. 

    While Kushwaha said he was not informed about the minister’s visit, Lalan Singh was not simply spotted at the event. There was more: posters welcoming RCP Singh carried no pictures of either Kushwaha or Lalan Singh. The posters were later removed and new ones with pictures of Lalan Singh were put up but again Kushwaha’s picture still remained absent.

    Kushwaha and RCP Singh haven’t had the best of relations. When Kushwaha merged his Rashtriya Lok Samata Party with the JD-U, RCP Singh was not in favour of it. Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and RCP Singh dismissed “speculation” about JD-U’s factionalism. Kumar said: “Some people are spreading such rumours. There is no demonstration of political strength on the arrival of anyone like RCP Singh.”

    “I myself had recommended RCP Singh for the party’s national president. Now, RCP Singh has made Lalan Singh the national president. Everyone in the party is united,” said Nitish. Sources said no senior leader, except a few ministers, MPs and MLAs, was seen in the function. “Dissidence in the JD-U is real,” said a leader who attended the function.

    When asked about the party’s demand for a caste-based census, RCP Singh was evasive, but said inclusive development was taking place in the country, and that reservation was a non-issue.

  • Former Union Minister Upendra Kushwaha among 12 nominated to Bihar legislative council

    By PTI
    PATNA: Former Union minister Upendra Kushwaha and two members of the Nitish Kumar cabinet were among 12 persons who on Wednesday got nominated to the Bihar legislative council.

    Of the dozen seats, 10 had been lying vacant since the expiry of term in June last year while two others were vacated a year earlier by members who got elected to the Lok Sabha in general elections.

    Nominations to the 12 seats had been hanging fire on account of a tug of war between the BJP, which now is numerically superior in the NDA in the assembly, and Chief Minister Nitish Kumars JD(U).

    Both parties have, ultimately, settled for six seats each.

    The MLCs nominated from the JD(U) include Kushwaha who merged his Rashtriya Lok Samata Party into the chief ministers party on Sunday last and was immediately rewarded with a top organisational post.

    Also on the list are the minister for building construction Ashok Choudhary, the partys voluble spokesman Sanjay Singh, the chief ministers close aide Sanjay Kumar Singh alias Gandhiji, Lalan Saraf and Ram Bachan Rai.

    Sanjay Singh returns to the Upper House after a gap of nearly three years.

    The terms of Choudhary, Gandhiji, Saraf and Rai had expired a year ago.

    From the BJP, the MLCs nominated include Janak Ram, a former Gopalganj MP who was recently made the states minister for mines and geology.

    Others from the party include journalist-turned-politician and state general secretary Devesh Kumar and vice president Pramod Kumar Chandravanshi, besides Nivedita Singh, Ghanshyam Thakur and Rajendra Kumar Gupta.

    The development comes a day after the chief minister was authorised by the state cabinet to take the final call on the names of candidates.

  • Friendship restored: Upendra Kushwaha announces official merger of RLSP with JDU in Bihar

    Express News Service
    PATNA: Putting an end to all speculations on Sunday, founder of Rashtriya Lok Samta Party (RLSP) Upendra Kushwaha announced the merger of his party with all ideologies and individuals with the ruling Janata Dal (United) (JDU) on Sunday.

    “RLSP will work for common causes under the leadership of chief minister Nitish Kumar to make Bihar stronger,” Kushwaha told in a press meet. 

    “Even before floating the RLSP, I had worked elaborately for the JDU. The merger is happening in the larger interest of the state.”

    According to political analysts, the merger was long speculated following the debacle that RLSP faced in the recent assembly polls in Bihar. Recently, close to 35 senior RLSP leaders had joined the RJD.

    When asked what his role will be like after the merger, Kushwaha said that he has left it on CM Nitish Kumar to decide and further hinted that he would work for boosting the education sector in the state with the support of all the parties in the alliance. 

    On being reminded of his statement on Nitish Kumar an enemy by one of the reporters, Kushwaha asked him to forget what was said in the past. “There is no need of an enemy when you have a friend like Nitish Kumar,” the RLSP founder had said. 

    An evidently elated Kushwaha, while describing Nitish Kumar like his elder brother, said that all like-minded people in politics with common ideologies should come on one platform.