M A I N   N E W S

After drubbing, Nitish quits
BJP sweep in Bihar hits JD-U hard
Sharad Yadav hints at tie-up with Lalu
Vibha Sharma
Tribune News Service & pti

Tough time for Rawat too Uttarakhand Chief Minister Harish Rawat is facing heat after Congress' rout in the Lok Sabha polls in the state. With the BJP bagging all five seats, saffron party leaders are gunning for Rawat. Satpal Maharaj, state BJP chief Teerath Singh Rawat demanded the Chief Minister's resignation on moral grounds on Saturday.

New Delhi/Patna, May 17
The BJP’s impressive victory has changed political dynamics in many states, including Bihar, the state managed by its friend-turned-foe Nitish Kumar of the JD-U. A day after the ruling JD-U suffered an embarrassing rout in the General Election, Nitish today resigned as the Bihar Chief Minister. The JD-U won only two seats, while the BJP and its allies secured 31 out of 40 Lok Sabha seats.

“I take moral responsibility for the defeat,” Nitish said.

He said he was not asking for the dissolution of the Assembly because he did not want it to be “disturbed”.

In the 243-member Bihar Assembly, the JD(U) has 115 members, BJP 89 and RJD 21. The JD(U) has the support of four members of the Congress, one of CPI and two Independents. Six seats are vacant. JD(U) president Sharad Yadav maintained a new government will be formed in Bihar and it will be of the JD(U). He said the new CM will be decided tomorrow. “Differences with RJD leader Lalu Prasad will be resolved for a secular alliance,” Yadav said.

Lalu reacted by saying his party was monitoring the political situation. “Just like everybody, I have also come to know about his (Nitish’s) resignation. The people have rejected him. Nothing is clear as of now, so we are watching the situation," said Lalu.

Many JD-U MLAs have criticised Nitish for the decision. BJP sources, however, say more than “moral responsibility”, Nitish would have abhorred to find himself in a situation where he, as the Chief Minister, would have had to welcome Modi as the Prime Minister whenever he arrived in Bihar. According to the protocol, the PM is received by the CM upon his arrival in any state. The party dismissed Nitish’s resignation as “drama”. “He has a history of resigning and again joining the same government. After Gaisal rail accident in 1999, he resigned and then rejoined after sometime,” senior BJP leader and former Deputy CM Sushil Kumar Modi tweeted.