Dhankhar's resignation will force a rethink in BJP on Nitish Kumar, says Tejashwi

Patna: RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav on Tuesday claimed that the resignation of Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar would force a rethink in the BJP over the “compulsion” to continue with JD(U) president Nitish Kumar as the NDA’s leader in Bihar.

Referring to a recent statement by Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Yadav also predicted that after the upcoming assembly polls in Bihar, Kumar will meet the same fate as Eknath Shinde, the former Maharashtra CM who had to make way for the BJP’s Devendra Fadnavis.

“Dhankhar’s resignation has given rise to the question, what is the compulsion for the BJP to keep backing Nitish Kumar, who seems to be not in his senses,” said the leader of the opposition in the Bihar assembly, when he was asked about the sudden development and its possible impact on the state.

Dhankhar, who turned 74 a couple of months ago, resigned from the top constitutional post on Monday, citing health reasons.

Yadav’s party colleague Akhtarul Islam Shahin had said earlier in the day that the resignation was “a BJP conspiracy to shunt Nitish Kumar” by getting the 75-year-old, but proactive, politician appointed to a post deemed to be politically inconsequential.

A few years ago, late Sushil Kumar Modi, a BJP leader who served as Kumar’s deputy for years, had also claimed that the JD(U) supremo was himself eyeing the top constitutional post and when the saffron party refused, the CM reacted by quitting the NDA, bringing down the government, only to return to power armed with the support of RJD, Congress and three Left parties.

However, Yadav took a more nuanced view than Shahin and said, “It is indeed on the BJP’s mind that Kumar has to be dispensed with at some stage. That is the reason why Amit Shah recently said that though the polls will be fought under Nitish Kumar’s leadership, who would be the chief minister, in the event of NDA retaining power, will be decided in course of time.” “We have always been saying that Nitish Kumar could be the next Eknath Shinde. The possibility has only grown stronger with the resignation of Dhankhar,” asserted the former deputy CM of Bihar.