Will Nitish Kumar Reconsider Resignation? Decision Likely Today

Patna: A day after Nitish Kumar resigned as chief minister of Bihar, his party, the Janata Dal (United), failed to decide on a new leader, in a meeting held in Patna on Sunday.

The meeting ended last evening after party leaders created a ruckus as they unanimously chose Nitish Kumar as their leader, but he refused to withdraw his resignation. (Nitish Kumar Resigns a Day After Poll Defeat)

Mr Kumar has placated his MLAs for now by telling them he needs another day to think about what they have told him.

"We were adamant there would be no other choice. Nitish ji said he needs another day so we have asked him to hold another meeting tomorrow," JD(U) leader Nitish Mishra said on Sunday.

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Earlier in the day, JD(U) chief Sharad Yadav had said that Mr Kumar's resignation is final and he will not go back on the move. Mr Yadav, however, refused to comment on the speculation about a possible alliance between the JD(U) and Lalu Yadav's RJD. (Read: Three RJD Legislators Resign to Join Nitish Kumar's Party)

Sources close to Mr Kumar had also said, that he is not willing to be re-elected as he does not want his decision to be seen as a political stunt. (In Nitish Kumar's Resignation, Another Twist in Bihar's Political Tale?)

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Another meeting is likely to be held on Monday, as the party leaders are adamant that they will not agree to anyone except Nitish as their leader.

"We want Nitish Kumar to continue as the chief minister...Only because of Nitish the state is doing so well," JD(U) MLA Neeraj Kumar said after the meeting.

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Mr Kumar had stepped down from the top post yesterday after taking moral responsibility for the ruling party's debacle in the Lok Sabha elections. "I take moral responsibility for the defeat... I should," he said at a press conference on Saturday, adding, in an apparent dig at PM-elect Narendra Modi, "We hope that good days have come. Promises will be fulfilled."

Meanwhile, Sushil Kumar Modi, leader of the JD(U)'s political ally-turned-foe BJP, said, "A political instability has been created in Bihar after his resignation...the governor should meet JD(U) MLAs and check with each one of them." (Nitish Kumar is Fond of Resigning: Sushil Kumar Modi)

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The JD(U) had suffered a rout in the Lok Sabha polls and it could only win two of the 40 seats in Bihar. It had won 20 seats in 2009 in alliance with the BJP, which had bagged another 12.

The BJP was the beneficiary of the JD(U)'s decision to part ways with it in June last year. It won 31 seats this time in partnership with Ram Vilas Paswan's Lok Janshakti Party and Upendra Kushwaha's Rashtriya Lok Samata Party.

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On Friday, six ministers who had been critical of Mr Kumar's decision to part ways with the BJP last year did not attend a cabinet meeting that Mr Kumar had called.

In an Assembly with an effective strength of 238, the JD(U) has 114 members and has been propped up by the support of four Congress members, three Independents and a CPI legislator.  The actual strength of the assembly is 243.