Uddhav Dials Nitish Before Meet to Pick Bihar CM as INDIA Bloc Convener; Discussion May be Postponed

Former Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray on Thursday held a telephonic conversation with Lalu Prasad Yadav, Nitish Kumar and Arvind Kejriwal regarding consensus over the convener for INDIA bloc.

Top sources in Shiv Sena told News18 that all INDIA alliance leaders are in conversation with each other for better coordination. They further told the publication that the meeting has been deferred and will now happen on Friday, December 4.

Earlier in the day, sources had told News18 that Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar is likely to be picked as INDIA alliance’s convener as leaders of the Opposition bloc are set to meet virtually around 6:30pm on Thursday.

Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar may be picked as INDIA alliance’s convener on Wednesday as leaders of the Opposition bloc are set to meet virtually around 6:30pm.

Sources said that not all parties will be available for the discussion. “Around 10-12 parties will participate, and the decision will be conveyed to other,” a source added.

Sources further said that there is near consensus on Nitish Kumar as Rahul and Sonia Gandhi, and Mamata Banerjee pushed for the Janata Dal (United) leader.

One of the main reasons behind picking Kumar is that he’s from the Hindi heartland (Bihar), which the Opposition feels will counter Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s strength and popularity in the belt.

“At a time when Rahul Gandhi is embarking on an important yatra, we want to keep the momentum going. If Nitish Kumar crosses over to the BJP-led NDA, the effort to unite the Opposition will fizzle out. Most of the INDIA bloc members seem to share this concern. The Congress, anyway, will maintain its primacy as the leading party in the alliance by keeping the position of national president or chairperson with Kharge,” a report in Indian Express quoted a Congress leader as saying.

Meanwhile, Congress Bihar president Akhilesh Prasad Singh also signalled that Nitish Kumar will be made their alliance convener.

A report in Times of India quoted Singh as saying that rumours were being floated about Nitish going away from the INDIA bloc, but nothing such was going to happen.

He praised the Bihar CM for his efforts in uniting the opposition parties and called him the axis of their INDIA bloc.

The Congress leader said Nitish had all the skills and the latter would be made the convener of the INDIA bloc. “Very soon, the confusion will be clear and BJP will get a lesson in 2024. In fact, BJP people lost their sleep the day Nitish left them,” Singh was quoted as saying.

Kumar’s deputy, Tejashwi Yadav, also supported the proposal. He said that the Bihar CM is an experienced leader and it would be great if he is made the convener of the INDIA coalition.

Yadav, who belongs to the RJD, also exuded confidence that the seemingly thorny issue of seat-sharing will be sorted out “without any problem”.

“Nitish Kumar is such a senior leader. If such a proposal comes, it will be great for Bihar,” Yadav told reporters at the Gaya airport when his comments were sought on the speculations that the JD(U) president could be made the convener of the opposition coalition.

(With inputs from Pallavi Ghosh in New Delhi and Vinaya Deshpande in Mumbai)