Patna,(BiharTimes): The victory of grand alliance in the by-polls for 10 Assembly seats in Bihar may have come as a small consolation for the ruling Janata Dal (United) in Bihar, yet there is a matter of concern for its leader, the former chief minister, Nitish Kumar. Once again his own party’s performance was not as good as that of the alliance partner, the Rashtriya Janata Dal or even the Congress, whose candidate Ajit Sharma won the Bhagalpur seat, a BJP bastion for the last many decades, by 17,229 votes.
The RJD won three out of four seats and lost the fourth one of Banka by just 711 votes. The victory margins of RJD candidates were bigger, except in Parbatta where R N Singh of JD(U) won by a margin of 56,990 votes. But that was against LJP candidate, Suheli Mehta, and not against the BJP.
This was very much in line with the Lok Sabha election in which the RJD got four and JD(U) two seats. In the by-elections for the five Assembly seats, held along with the parliamentary election earlier in the year, the RJD bagged three, while JD(U) and BJP one
If this performance of the RJD continues it may acquire more political clout over the alliance and gradually push the JD(U) back. This may have its reflection on the state administration too.
Now much depends on Nitish’s political skill to cope with this emerging situation. But one thing is clear: RJD may seek its own pound of flesh as it is repeatedly emerging as a bigger party than the JD(U).
But then there is something for Nitish to console. The verdict has dealt a big blow to the dissidents within the Janata Dal (United). Nitish has always been blaming the BJP for backing the rebels.
Now with the renewed energy and RJD’s support Nitish would be in a better position to crack his whip on these legislators. He would now try to keep his own house in order and gear up for the next Assembly election.