In yet another rebuff to the BJP, his fourth in over a month, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar skipped the NITI Aayog meeting chaired by PM Narendra Modi in New Delhi on Sunday.
Kumar-led JD(U) also said it will not join the Union council of ministers again, where it has been left with no representation after the resignation of RCP Singh. Recent tiffs between allies JD(U) and BJP’s Bihar unit have led to speculation of another political churn in the offing in the state. Sources close to Kumar attributed his absence from Delhi to post-Covid debility. The Bihar CM had tested positive on July 25 but attended a function in Patna on Sunday where he shared the dais with his Cabinet colleagues, including BJP leaders Syed Shahnawaz Hussain and Tarkishore Prasad.
There was speculation that JD(U) could send its national president Rajiv Ranjan Singh alias Lalan to the Union Cabinet, with RCP Singh quitting. Lalan said the decision not to join the Cabinet was taken by Kumar.
(Published 07 August 2022, 19:27 IST)
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