Buoyed NDA ready for ‘early’ polls in Bihar
Nitish Kumar concludes his Pragati Yatra, hinting at possible early elections as NDA expresses readiness and highlights positive governance in Bihar.
Amid all kinds of speculations about his health by the Opposition, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar completed his two-month Pragati Yatra covering all the 38 districts on Friday, and on Sunday senior JD-U leader and Nitish’s cabinet colleague Vijay Kumar Choudhary said that the NDA was ready for election any time, hinting at possibility of an early election in Bihar.
“The NDA is ready any time. It is for the Election Commission to decide when should election be held in the state. The scheduled time for election is October-November. The cohesion among the constituents of the alliance and the positive vibes the Yatra has generated has pulled the rug from under the feet of the Opposition and that is why they have been speaking the language only they can. The fact is that Bihar has no substitute for Nitish Kumar and the people realise it, while the Opposition knows it,” he added.
Choudhary said though all his Yatras (this was Nitish Kumar’s 15th) were significant, Pragati Yatra was special for the simple reason that it gave the CM opportunity to review his government’s governance model of ‘development with justice’ in the last two decades and vibes he got was positive all the way.
The timing of the Pragati Yatra of the CM and NDA’s unity show across the state ahead of the Budget session had thrown ample hints about the prospect of early election to surprise the opposition to cash in on the momentum achieved with BJP’s recent victories in Haryana, Maharashtra and Delhi. Now, Choudhary’s remark of being “poll ready NDA” has come just ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bhagalpur rally on February 24.
“Early election cannot be ruled out, as public memory is short. NDA has prepared itself early and it cannot be without reasons. What Vijay Choudhary has hinted can be a real possibility, as it is quite natural for the NDA to cash in on the momentum. All eyes will now be on the EC,” said social analyst and former director of AN Sinha Institute of Social Studies DM Diwakar.
Another significant thing at the end of Nitish Yatra was his not so media savvy son Nishant Kumar answering about his health in a cryptic comment.
“He is good health and has done a lot of work for Bihar. Vote for him again to continue Bihar’s forward journey,” said Nishant to media queries on Leader of Opposition Tejashwi Prasad Yadav and Jan Suraj Party founder Prashant Kishor questioning the health of Bihar CM.
Nitish Kumar has been quiet on Opposition attacks even as he continued with his long yatra and concluded it just ahead of the crucial Budget session starting February 28, reiterating time and again all through that “I will not commit the mistake I committed twice in the past (by going with the RJD) and remain with the BJP”.
As one would expect, in the election year he showered projects and programmes worth thousands of crores during his yatra and held review meetings with officials to send the message across that he may be well and truly on course for another term.
“He seems to be blessed with some divine power, for the way he continued with the yatra. We will go into 2025 polls ubder Nitish Kumar’s leadership with a target of winning 225 of the 243 seats, leaving the Opposition with no chance,” said BJP president Dilip Jaiswal.
Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Jha said that during the review the CM announced new schemes where ever needs were felt and inaugurated completed ones. “It has been one of the most successful Yatras of CM to get a feel of the way the state has witnessed positive change. He witnessed changing seasons -- from winter to spring to early hint of summer - but continued with his Yatra to meticulously review everything, which RJD can never understand. Nitish Kumar has drawn such a big line that will be hard to match for anyone,” he added.
Starting off on December 23 in peak winter, he capped it on February 21 in Patna, inaugurating and laying foundation stone of projects worth around ₹21,000-crore and announced new projects and schemes worth over twice the amount, many of which have also got the cabinet nod. In a poll-bound state, that is also a clear message.
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