New Delhi: Bihar Chief Minister Jitan Ram Manjhi on Friday hit back at his mentor-turned-foe Nitish Kumar, saying he will not resign. Nitish has committed a big mistake. He should not think that I am a puppet. I will not resign as chief minister,” Manjhi said reporters. I will quit only if you prove me wrong,” he added.
Manjhi’s reaction came shortly after state Governor Keshari Nath Tripathi advised Nitish not to make political statements out of desperation. The Governor made the remarks a day after the former CM accused Governor of acting at the behest of the BJP government at the Centre.
Kumar made the statement after the Governor on Wednesday asked Manjhi to prove majority on the floor of the Assembly on February 20. The developments came even as the JD(U), in a terse message to the seven ruling party legislators who have sided with Manjhi and continued to remain ministers in his minority government, asked them to quit immediately and return to the party-fold.
“We direct all of you to immediately sever ties with Manjhi and resign as ministers in his government otherwise the party will crack whips against you all,” state unit JD(U) president Bashistha Narayan Singh told reporters.
Seven JD(U) legislators – Narendra Singh, Mahachandra Prasad Singh and Bhim Singh (all three MLCs) and Nitish Mishra, Shahid Ali Khan, Samrat Chaudhary, Brishen Patel (all MLAs) had defied party line and sided with the Manjhi government.
Another minister Vinay Behari is an independent MLA. The JD(U) had suspended Manjhi from the party after he defied its decision to resign from the chief minister’s post to clear deck for Nitish Kumar to take over the reins of power. The Speaker had subsequently declared Manjhi as an unattached member of the House.
Bureau Report
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