Nitish Kumar's JD(U) Likely To Get Big Ministries In New Government

With the BJP falling short of majority in Lok Sabha, its allies in NDA have started bargaining hard for plum ministries at the Centre. The allies, including Coalition-era veterans N Chandrababu Naidu and Nitish Kumar, are learnt to have put forward their demands in the NDA meeting held yesterday. No official word on what they have demanded is out yet, but hectic negotiations are on, it is learnt. The JDU, which now has 12 MPs in Lok Sabha, expects two Cabinet berths and one MoS role, party sources have said. The Railways Minister post will be a key choice, they added. The Nitish Kumar-led party may also press for a Common Minimum Programme for the new NDA government and a coordination committee to ensure its implementation. A Common Minimum Programme is a resolution, outlining the shared agenda of parties in a coalition.