Bihar Governor invites Nitish Kumar to form Govt

     Patna: Bihar Governor Buta Singh on Wednesday invited National Democratic Alliance's (NDA)'s candidate for Chief Minister and JD(U) leader Nitish Kumar to form government in Bihar after he staked claim following NDA's emergence as the majority group in the over a month-long, four-phased assembly election. Nitish, who was earlier unanimously elected the leader of JD(U) legislature party, will be sworn in along with State Bharatiya Janata Party chief Sushil Kumar Modi at the Gandhi Maidan at 1230 hrs (IST) on Thursday.

       Modi would be sworn in as the Deputy Chief Minister of the State. The Governor would administer the oath of office and secrecy to the Council of Ministers headed by Kumar. Interestingly, neither of the leaders is member of the 14th Assembly. The Chief Minister-in-waiting Nitish Kumar is a Member of Parliament from Barh, while Modi is Lok Sabha representative of Bhagalpur.

Nitish Kumar elected JD(U) assembly leader

      Earlier, Nitish Kumar was unanimously elected leader of JD(U) Legislature Party on Wednesday afternoon. Predictably, Sushil Kumar Modi, the president of the BJP's Bihar unit, was elected as the leader of the BJP legislative party, and decks were cleared for him to take over as the new Deputy Chief Minister of Bihar. Kumar's name was proposed by JD(U) MLA from Jokihat Manza Alam and seconded by legislator from Imamganj Uday Narain Chaudhary. The proposal was unanimously adopted.

     The JD(U) and the BJP leaders are now meeting in Patna, the state capital, to finalise the names of the ministeral aspirants of the new government and to prepare a formal letter to stake claim to form the government after emerging as the majority party in the over month long four-phased polls. Earlier, Kumar was given a rousing welcome by his supporters in Patna after his arrival from the Indian capital. He was showered with garlands of flowers and carried by his supporters from the airport tarmac to his car convoy. Talking to newspersons in New Delhi before his departure for Patna, he said that he would be inducting about 14 ministers, including a deputy chief minister, in the new NDA government in the state. "There will be a deputy chief minister. We will be initially inducting a small team of about 12-14 ministers which would be later expanded," Kumar told reporters after attending the BJP Parliamentary Party meeting, where he was felicitated for NDA's sweep in the Bihar assembly elections.

Nitish's promise to restore law and order

     Asked whether the three-month deadline he had given to restore the law and order situation in Bihar was too short, Nitish Kumar said "where there is a will, there is a way. If determination is there, every thing is possible." He said people were initially apprehensive whether the RJD government can be removed at all and whether free and fair elections can be held in the state, "but both of them have been achieved." "The myths have been exploded one after another. This government will be able to restore law and order. We will take the cooperation of all communities," he said. Kumar said his priorities included establishing the rule of law, putting the state on the development path and creating social goodwill. Seeking to remove apprehensions of any community vis-a-vis the new regime, he said "the common man is happy. It will be a government of all the people."

       Earlier, honouring Nitish Kumar, BJP President LK Advani said the people of Bihar have created history and the credit goes to both the NDA and Nitish Kumar. "It is a victory over challenge," he said and expressed confidence that the face of Bihar will change in the next five years. Expressing gratitude, Kumar said the Bihar poll verdict was a vote for change.

     Meanwhile, the Election Commission has issued a notification to constitute the 14th Bihar Assembly The election process for the Bihar Assembly came to an end with the Election Commission formally issuing notification to constitute the 243-member 14th House. The State Election department handed over the list of new legislators to Governor Buta Singh late Tuesday night. National Democratic Alliance leader Nitish Kumar would take oath as the new Chief Minister at the Gandhi Maidan on Thursday.

Bihar coalition will work in tandem: Digvijay Singh

     New Delhi: Bihar's victorious Janata Dal (United) will work in full co-operation with its ally, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), as the coalition prepares to form a government in the state, a senior party leader said on Wednesday, crushing reports of heartburn between the two over power sharing arrangements. The parties had together bagged 145 of the 243 legislative seats in the state stomping out the previous ruling Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), which had allied with the Congress party-led federal coalition for the elections. The JD (U)'s top leader and chief ministerial candidate for the coalition, Nitish Kumar, has already announced that he would appoint a deputy who local media reports say would be from the BJP, which has made its first major political bounce-back since losing power in New Delhi last year's general elections.

     "In a coalition it is the responsibility of the larger party to work together with its allies. It is not a liability, it is a responsibility. The JD (U) has emerged as the largest party in Bihar's Legislative Assembly and so it is now our duty to ensure we work in tandem and work with the interest of our allies in our minds," Digvijay Singh, senior JD (U) leader, told reporters here today.

     One of India's poorest and most populous states, Bihar was placed under President's Rule after polls in February had led to a hung assembly that was dissolved in May. The unprecedented move by Bihar Governor Buta Singh came as the JD (U)-BJP claimed that they had cobbled together a majority but despite protests, Singh sought and got a presidential approval to dissolve the assembly. New Delhi, analysts say, dissolved Bihar's legislature in what appeared to be a deliberate attempt to prevent the BJP-led alliance from forming a coalition government. In a major embarrassment for the Congress party, the dissolution was termed "unconstitutional" by India's Supreme Court, which stopped short of overturning the move. A detailed verdict on the case is expected to come within this week, and the BJP, which has been furiously campaigning for Buta Singh's removal said it was the moral duty of the Congress to recall the governor.

    The Congress has said it would act only after the Court's verdict. "We are making no demand but on moral grounds the Congress and the federal government should withdraw Buta Singh. The way he has behaved...he should be withdrawn. If the Congress says it will wait for the Supreme Court, it will also be clear in a few days, but we feel he should be withdrawn before that only," Sushil Kumar Modi, senior BJP leader, said. "Buta Singh has been a Congressman but now he is a Governor. Whatever the country's laws are we will act according to them. If the Supreme Court gives a directive, then the Congress will act," said Ambika Soni, Congress spokesperson. The election for a new assembly in Bihar was crucial for the RJD -- the second largest party in the Congress-led Central Government, and the loss, analysts say, could have significant ramifications on the Centre, which is also propped up by Left- wing parties.