Amid growing buzz over JD(U), RJD rift, Nitish Kumar rejigs team, axes MPs close to Lalan Singh

A day after RJD chief Lalu Prasad along with his son and Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Tejashwi Yadav called on CM and JD(U) president Nitish Kumar at his residence in Patna, the relations between the two camps seem to have come under fresh strain, even as Nitish moved to revamp the JD(U).

On Saturday evening, Nitish announced a 21-member team of the new JD(U) national office-bearers, dropping 15 of the party’s total 16 Lok Sabha MPs from it, some of whom are said to be close to former party national president Rajiv Ranjan Singh or Lalan Singh.

Lalan lost his post to Nitish last month amid reports that the CM had been upset with the former over his alleged proximity to Lalu Prasad.

In his new team, Nitish brought in his close aide and Rajya Sabha MP Bashistha Narayan Singh as a vice-president replacing former MP Mangani Lal Mandal, who is now among 11 party general secretaries.

Former MP K C Tyagi, who was the JD(U) advisor and its national spokesperson, has been named as the party’s political advisor and national spokesperson. Nitish also appointed six new secretaries.

Sources in the RJD and JD (U) also said that Nitish has been “pressuring” Lalu to go for simultaneous Assembly polls along with the Lok Sabha elections slated for April-May. Nitish is said to have come under increasing pressure from within the JD(U) to go for synchronised elections so that the party could improve on its 2020 tally.

In the 243-member House, the RJD is the single largest party with 79 MLAs as against the BJP’s 78. The JD(U) has just 45 MLAs. The next Assembly polls in Bihar are due in October-November 2025.

While the RJD and JD(U) leaders have been publicly dismissive of rising tensions between the two major Mahagathbandhan (grand alliance)