Sushasan, switches and survival: End of an era in Bihar as Nitish moves on

In a astonishing crook of events, Bihar main curate Nitish Kumar filed his information for the Rajya Sabha connected Thursday successful Patna. The abrupt determination has pushed Bihar into a large governmental displacement portion ending the tenure of the state's longest main minister.Nitish Kumar, who has served arsenic Bihar’s longest-tenured main curate for much than 2 decades, informed of his determination to contention Rajya Sabha elections via societal media post.

"I question to go a subordinate of the Rajya Sabha successful the elections being held this time. I privation to guarantee you with implicit honesty that my narration with you volition proceed successful the aboriginal arsenic well, and my resoluteness to enactment unneurotic with you to physique a developed Bihar volition stay steadfast.

The caller authorities that volition beryllium formed volition person my afloat practice and guidance," the 75-year-old person wrote connected X.For astir 2 decades, Nitish has been successful powerfulness successful Bihar done coalitions. And 1 of the astir intriguing paradoxes of Nitish's agelong governmental vocation is that helium governed Bihar for longer than immoderate of his predecessors contempt ne'er starring a enactment that secured an outright bulk successful the authorities assembly.

His party, the Janata Dal (United), consistently relied connected alliances with larger oregon arsenic almighty partners to stay successful government.This antithetic governmental equation made Nitish Kumar a maestro negotiator.Power successful Bihar during his tenure depended not simply connected electoral spot but connected the quality to stitch unneurotic coalitions crossed caste blocs and ideological divides. Nitish Kumar excelled astatine precisely that. His quality to support governmental relevance adjacent arsenic the comparative spot of his enactment fluctuated turned him into 1 of the astir skilled negotiator of Indian politics.Supporters often picture this arsenic grounds of his governmental acumen. Critics, however, reason that his endurance depended much connected opportunistic alliances than connected a unchangeable electoral mandate.Within the JD(U), the absorption to his determination has been 1 of disbelief.

Senior enactment person and Bihar's societal payment curate Madan Sahni publically questioned whether the determination genuinely reflected Nitish Kumar’s idiosyncratic choice. "We are stunned to spot immoderate is happening. It is hard to judge that this could person been Nitish Kumar’s ain decision," quality bureau PTI quoted Sahni arsenic saying.According to Sahni, Nitish Kumar had agelong expressed a tendency to service successful each 3 legislative arenas of the democracy: the authorities assembly, the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha.

His determination to the Upper House, therefore, was being presented arsenic the fulfilment of that ambition.But for galore wrong the JD(U), the modulation felt little similar a voluntary determination and much similar the extremity of an epoch forced by changing governmental realities.Outside the enactment bureau successful Patna, JD(U) workers gathered successful choler and disbelief. Police were deployed to forestall supporters from marching toward the main minister’s residence.Some refused to judge that the person they had followed for decades would measurement down truthful abruptly.For years, adjacent governmental rivals acknowledged Nitish Kumar's stature. The precocious Sushil Kumar Modi, 1 of the BJP's astir salient leaders successful Bihar, had erstwhile described him arsenic "prime curate material."To galore supporters, therefore, his exit from the main minister’s bureau feels similar a autumn from a presumption erstwhile seen arsenic nationally significant.Opposition leaders, however, spot the infinitesimal differently.Tejashwi Yadav, person of the absorption and lad of Lalu Prasad Yadav, argued that Nitish Kumar’s predicament was the effect of his ain governmental decisions."The BJP has done a Maharashtra successful Bihar," Tejashwi said, referring to arguable powerfulness shifts seen successful different states. "But Nitish Kumar has lone himself to blame. While successful alliance, we supported him arsenic main curate contempt having much MLAs, but helium chose to locomotion distant connected 2 occasions."

Entry into politics

Nitish Kumar was calved connected March 1, 1951, successful Bakhtiarpur successful Bihar’s Patna district. His father, Ram Lakhan Singh, was an Ayurvedic practitioner and a state combatant who had been associated with the Congress during the independency movement.He studied electrical engineering astatine the Bihar College of Engineering successful Patna, present known arsenic the National Institute of Technology (NIT) Patna. He concisely worked astatine the Bihar State Electricity Board earlier turning to politics.Nitish Kumar's governmental individuality was forged successful the turbulence of the 1970s and 1980s.Like galore leaders of his generation, helium emerged from the socialist question led by Jayaprakash Narayan during the anti-Emergency agitation. The question produced a procreation of politicians who would predominate northbound Indian authorities for decades.Among them were Nitish Kumar and Lalu Prasad Yadav. Both leaders roseate wrong the aforesaid governmental tradition.

Both belonged to backward caste communities empowered by the Mandal gyration of the 1990s.Yet their governmental styles could not person been much different.

Lalu thrived connected wide mobilisation, humour and confrontational politics. Nitish preferred administrative detail, dialog and strategical positioning.The divergence became clearer arsenic Lalu Prasad Yadav consolidated powerfulness successful Bihar aft becoming main curate successful 1990, pursuing the implementation of the Mandal Commission recommendations by Prime Minister VP Singh.Lalu's apprehension of Lal Krishna Advani during the 1990 Ram Rath Yatra cemented his estimation arsenic a defender of secular authorities and a champion of backward caste empowerment.But arsenic Lalu's popularity grew, Nitish Kumar grew progressively uneasy with what helium saw arsenic the attraction of powerfulness wrong 1 leader's personality.In 1995, helium yet broke distant from the Janata Dal.The divided marked the opening of a agelong governmental rivalry that would specify Bihar authorities for decades.

Experimentation earlier BJP alliance

After leaving the Janata Dal, Nitish Kumar experimented with respective governmental strategies successful his quest to physique an alternate to Lalu Prasad Yadav.Along with socialist person George Fernandes, helium founded the Samata Party.In his hunt for allies, Nitish Kumar concisely explored practice with the extremist left-wing enactment CPI(ML) Liberation, which was past an emerging governmental unit successful parts of Bihar.The experimentation reflected Kumar’s ideological roots successful socialist politics.

But the effort soon revealed the limits of ideological alliances successful a authorities wherever electoral arithmetic was dominated by caste coalitions.

Nitish Kumar yet concluded that defeating Lalu Prasad Yadav required a broader governmental alliance.That calculation led him toward the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). In 1996, helium contested the Lok Sabha elections arsenic portion of an confederation with the BJP.

The instauration of JD(U)

One of Nitish Kumar’s astir consequential governmental moves came erstwhile helium persuaded seasoned socialist person Sharad Yadav to unite their factions.The merger created the Janata Dal (United).The caller enactment became the cardinal pillar of the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance successful Bihar. At the time, the BJP recognised that its ain societal basal successful Bihar remained limited. It was wide perceived arsenic a enactment dominated by precocious castes.Nitish Kumar, by contrast, came from the Kurmi assemblage and had credibility among backward caste voters. As a result, the BJP agreed to let the JD(U) to contention much seats than the BJP itself successful the assembly elections of 2005.The strategy proved decisive.After a fractured verdict earlier that year, a caller predetermination successful November 2005 delivered a comfy triumph for the NDA. Nitish Kumar yet became the main minister.

The longest-serving CM

Over the people of his governmental career, Nitish Kumar became the longest-serving main curate successful Bihar’s history, holding the bureau for much than 2 decades crossed aggregate terms.Kumar archetypal assumed bureau arsenic main curate concisely successful March 2000, though that authorities lasted lone a week aft helium failed to beryllium a bulk successful the assembly.

His enduring tenure began successful November 2005, erstwhile the confederation betwixt the Janata Dal (United) and the Bharatiya Janata Party secured a wide mandate successful the assembly elections.From past on, Kumar remained the cardinal fig successful Bihar politics, returning to the main minister’s bureau aggregate times done changing alliances and governmental realignments. His agelong tenure spanned dramatically antithetic governmental phases — from the aboriginal propulsion to reconstruct instrumentality and bid aft the 1990s to the aboriginal years of conjugation bargaining and shifting alliances.Last twelvemonth successful November, Nitish yet took oath arsenic main curate of Bihar for a record-extending tenth time.

'Paltu Ram': Flip-flops that defined Nitish's career

If governance made Nitish Kumar a respected administrator, his shifting alliances made him 1 of the astir arguable governmental figures.His archetypal large interruption with the BJP came successful 2013, erstwhile Narendra Modi was elevated wrong the enactment and wide expected to go its premier ministerial candidate. Nitish Kumar ended his party’s 17-year confederation with the BJP, arguing that the state required inclusive leadership.But the determination proved politically costly.In the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, the JD(U) suffered a humiliating defeat, winning lone 2 seats successful Bihar.Accepting responsibility, Nitish Kumar resigned arsenic main minister, taking “moral responsibility” for the party’s performance.Yet his governmental instincts soon resurfaced.Within months, helium regained powerfulness aft installing Jitan Ram Manjhi arsenic main curate and aboriginal replacing him with the enactment of his erstwhile rival Lalu Prasad Yadav.The confederation betwixt the 2 leaders culminated successful the 2015 Mahagathbandhan victory, 1 of the BJP’s astir important electoral defeats successful the Modi era.

But the concern collapsed successful 2017, erstwhile Nitish Kumar erstwhile again switched sides and returned to the BJP-led NDA.Another displacement followed successful 2022, erstwhile helium broke distant from the BJP again, lone to instrumentality to the confederation erstwhile much successful 2024.The repeated realignments earned him a nickname that became inseparable from his nationalist image: "Paltu Ram."These flip-flops became 1 of the defining features of Nitish Kumar's career.

The 'Sushasan Babu' of Bihar

Despite governmental controversies and shifting alliances, Nitish Kumar built a estimation for governance that earned him the fashionable nickname 'Sushasan Babu', oregon the antheral of bully governance.When helium archetypal assumed bureau arsenic main curate successful 2005, Bihar faced wide disapproval for mediocre infrastructure, anemic instrumentality and bid and sluggish economical growth.Nitish's authorities focused connected improving policing, speeding up transgression trials and expanding roadworthy and span operation crossed the state.His medication besides launched respective societal payment initiatives, including the Mukhyamantri Balika Cycle Yojana, which provided bicycles to schoolgirls to promote education. The strategy importantly accrued enrolment of girls successful secondary schools and became 1 of the astir wide cited symbols of his governance model.Other measures included reservations for women successful section bodies and authorities jobs, arsenic good arsenic payment programmes targeting highly backward classes and Mahadalits.The masterstroke came aft his authorities banned liquor successful the state. The women voters, since then, person rallied down Nitish making his enactment a victor each election.These initiatives besides helped alteration Bihar’s governance communicative and reconstruct a consciousness of administrative stableness aft years of turmoil and violence.

A CM who seldom fought assembly elections

Another distinctive facet of Nitish Kumar’s governmental vocation has been his repeated usage of the Legislative Council way to stay main minister.After becoming CM successful November 2005, Kumar did not contention an assembly predetermination immediately. Instead, helium entered the Bihar Legislative Council arsenic a Member of the Legislative Council (MLC), the precocious location of the authorities legislature, allowing him to proceed successful bureau without being elected to the assembly.He followed a akin way during consequent terms, often choosing to stay an MLC alternatively than contention assembly polls directly. Under the Constitution, a idiosyncratic who is not a subordinate of the legislature tin service arsenic main curate for six months, wrong which they indispensable unafraid rank successful either the assembly oregon the council.Kumar repeatedly utilized this proviso by getting elected oregon nominated to the Legislative Council, ensuring continuity successful bureau portion avoiding the request to contention constituency-level elections.Although helium did contention the 2015 Bihar assembly predetermination from the Harnaut seat, winning comfortably, overmuch of his clip arsenic main curate was spent arsenic a subordinate of the legislative council.Supporters accidental this reflected his relation arsenic a statewide person focused connected governance alternatively than constituency politics. Critics, however, argued that the MLC way allowed him to stay successful powerfulness portion mostly avoiding nonstop electoral contests successful the assembly.

The dynasty question

For years, Nitish Kumar distinguished himself from galore politicians by criticising "parivaarvaad", oregon dynasty politics.He often argued that governmental enactment should look from nationalist work alternatively than household inheritance.But arsenic his lad Nishant Kumar, present successful his precocious forties, prepares to participate nationalist life, that presumption whitethorn look its toughest test. If Nishant formally enters politics, Nitish Kumar could face the aforesaid disapproval helium erstwhile directed astatine rival leaders.What remains undisputed, however, is his bonzer quality to stay astatine the centre of Bihar’s authorities for much than 3 decades.