Patna:
Nitish Kumar may have dismissed all the BJP's 11 ministers from his government when he dissolved his partnership with the party, but he has been unable to dislodge BJP leaders from their positions on various boards and committees.
Mr Kumar's Janata Dal United or JD(U) wryly notes that while its ex-partner had reacted strongly to the dismissal of the ministers, saying they would have happily resigned instead, 12 days later not a single other BJP leader has vacated his post.
The Chairman of the Bihar Legislative Council , Avadesh Narayan Singh is a BJP man. While the Janata Dal wants him out now that the partnership is finished, the BJP says there is precedence that earlier regimes, like that of Lalu Prasad Yadav, allowed the chairman to complete his term even though he was from an opposition party.
The BJP's Bihar unit president Mangal Pandey said the party had just not applied its mind to do this and would decide on its leaders quitting various positions at an "appropriate time." But BJP leaders privately admitted that they are not considering vacating the posts and would rather force Mr Kumar to remove them. That, they can encash politically, they said.
The JD(U) and BJP were partners for many years and had won the last Assembly elections in Bihar together. Now, even as its leaders continue to hold top government posts, the BJP has been extremely critical of the Nitish Kumar government. "The BJP is a party with a difference. For a chair they can do anything," said Sanjay Singh, JD(U) spokesperson.
Mr Kumar's Janata Dal United or JD(U) wryly notes that while its ex-partner had reacted strongly to the dismissal of the ministers, saying they would have happily resigned instead, 12 days later not a single other BJP leader has vacated his post.
The Chairman of the Bihar Legislative Council , Avadesh Narayan Singh is a BJP man. While the Janata Dal wants him out now that the partnership is finished, the BJP says there is precedence that earlier regimes, like that of Lalu Prasad Yadav, allowed the chairman to complete his term even though he was from an opposition party.
The BJP's Bihar unit president Mangal Pandey said the party had just not applied its mind to do this and would decide on its leaders quitting various positions at an "appropriate time." But BJP leaders privately admitted that they are not considering vacating the posts and would rather force Mr Kumar to remove them. That, they can encash politically, they said.
The JD(U) and BJP were partners for many years and had won the last Assembly elections in Bihar together. Now, even as its leaders continue to hold top government posts, the BJP has been extremely critical of the Nitish Kumar government. "The BJP is a party with a difference. For a chair they can do anything," said Sanjay Singh, JD(U) spokesperson.
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