Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader and Rajya Sabha MP Manoj Jha on Saturday dismissed rumours suggesting that a few of the party’s MLAs were not on the party’s radar ahead of the floor test in the Bihar assembly.
Speaking to the media, the RJD leader said that party MLAs have decided to stay together for the next 48 hours and are playing antakshari (a game involving singing songs).
“…For us, February 12 is an ordinary date. Our MLAs had decided that for the next 48 hours, they would stay together and discuss various issues. You will find it very interesting that they are playing ‘antakshari‘ inside…,” news agency ANI quoted Jha as saying.
“February 12 is a small episode. We had not started this game but like Tejashwi Yadav said, we will finish it. Nitish Kumar had himself come forward for the alliance (INDIA),” he said.
The newly formed NDA government will seek a trust vote on February 12 (Monday), when the state assembly’s Budget session commences.
Last month, Bihar’s politics witnessed a shift when Nitish Kumar ditched the Mahagathbandhan (grand alliance) to rejoin the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA), nearly 18 months after he ditched the alliance to join the Opposition ranks.
Currently, the Nitish Kumar-led government has a majority with 128 members supporting the BJP-JD(U) led combine. The figure for the majority is 122 in the 243-member Bihar assembly.
Following the exit of JD(U), the strength of the Mahagathbandhan has been reduced to 114.