Like Karnataka, RJD must form govt in Bihar: Tejashwi

The Karnataka political imbroglio had its side effects in Bihar too on Thursday.

The single largest party in the State Assembly - the Rashtriya Janata Dal – asked Governor Satya Pal Malik to invite the RJD to form government in the State after dismissing the Nitish regime.

“There cannot be two yardsticks. If the Governor in Karnataka is right in inviting the single largest party to form the government, then this rule should be applicable in Bihar too where the RJD, with 80 MLAs, is the single largest party,” said Leader of the Opposition in the Assembly Tejashwi Yadav.

The RJD, backed by Congress, will stage a dharna outside Raj Bhavan in Patna on Friday. “We will stage a one-day dharna tomorrow against the murder of democracy in Karnataka. We also request the Bihar Governor to dissolve the State Government and, like in Karnataka, invite the single largest party, which in Bihar is the RJD,” tweeted Tejashwi in Hindi.

Not invited

Tejashwi's angst stems from the fact that on July 26, 2017, the then Governor Keshri Nath Tripathi had not invited RJD to form the government and instead asked Nitish Kumar to be sworn in on July 27 even though he had only 71 MLAs when he quit the Grand Alliance. Nitish got support from the BJP (53 MLAs) against whom the JD (U) strongman had contested a fierce and bitter battle in 2015 Assembly elections by forging a Grand Alliance comprising JD (U), RJD and Congress. Tejashwi had then staged dharna outside Raj Bhavan at 2 am after the midnight change of guard but his protest failed to cut ice with the Governor.

“Going by the BJP’s logic in Karnataka, I am staking claim to form the government in Bihar,” said former Deputyy Chief Minister Tejashwi.

“On what grounds the BJP had been telling the Congress to respect the people’s mandate. The mandate in 2015 Bihar Assembly election was against the BJP when it got merely 53 seats in the 243-member House. However, it came to power here through backdoor and is today giving sermons on constitutional propriety,” said Tejashwi, while hitting out at the saffron party.