JD(U) president Sharad Yadav is all set to pass on the baton of the party leadership to Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar. With Mr Kumar preparting the script for the 2019 Lok Sabha polls by expanding the JD(U) footprint outside Bihar, the decks are clear for him to take over the party’s leadership in New Delhi on Sunday.
After serving three consecutive terms as JD(U) president, Mr Sharad Yadav announced Monday that he would not seek another term. “The national council meeting on April 10 will elect Mr Nitish Kumar as party president,” said a key aide of the Bihar CM.
On the sidelines of the JD(U) national council meet, Mr Kumar will also be closeted with RLD chief Ajit Singh and Jharkhand Vikas Morcha (Prajatantrik) leader Babulal Maranadi. “The merger of the three parties are on the cards and a new party may take shape sooner,” the Bihar CM’s aide added. Mr Yadav was given a third term as chief by amending the JD(U) constitution, and he has held the position for over a decade. Earlier too, he had been JD(U) chief from 1997 to 2003 when another former socialist, George Fernandes, had taken over the party’s reins. Mr Yadav took over from Mr Fernandes again in 2006.
“By taking over the JD(U) leadership, Mr Kumar is keen to become the face of the Opposition by stitching a broad alliance against Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Though the grand plan for the merger of all Janata outfits did not materialise, he hasn’t given up all hope of bringing them on board,” a senior JD(U) leader said.
JD(U) secretary-general K.C. Tyagi told this newspaper that “Nitish Kumar is a senior leader, and the way he is looking at national politics, he can also become the party chief if he desires”. A move had been initiated within the JD(U) for some time to install Mr Kumar as party chief so that he can lead it on the eve of the UP polls due early next year. There are also reports that Mr Kumar is taking personal interest in repeating a “mahagathbandhan” on Bihar lines against the ruling SP and the BJP in UP.
