9 months ago
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The BJP and Nitish Kumar in Bihar are going to stick to the 2020 formula to share the cabinet berths in Bihar, sources have said. The Bihar Chief Minister switched sides last week -- the fifth time in a decade -- and formed a new government in partnership with the BJP, which he dumped in 2022.
He took oath yesterday with two deputies from the BJP, who, sources said, were deputed by the party "to keep an eye" on the 72-year-old dubbed "Paltu Kumar" by many for his frequent flip-flops.
The Council of Ministers will be expanded over the next few days, sources said, and the allocation of portfolios will take place after that. The crucial home department will stay with Mr Kumar.
In the coming days, the two sides will also discuss seat sharing for the Lok Sabha polls, but the earlier 17-17 formula for Bihar's 40 parliamentary seats will have to be tweaked, sources indicated.
This is because seats will also have to be allocated for the new allies, including Jitan Ram Manjhi's HAM.
Mr Kumar, sources said, had made up his mind to quit the Opposition on January 13, the day they were holding a video meet. Furious with Rahul Gandhi, he had left the meet 10 minute early.
Sources said what drove him to the final step was a response by Mr Gandhi that he would consult Mamata Banerjee on the post of the coordinator for the INDIA bloc. Shortly after that, the leaders chose him as the convenor. But angry, Mr Kumar rejected the post, saying it can be given to Lalu Yadav, sources said.
For chairman post, the suggestion was Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge, whose name was also proposed by Ms Banerjee and Arvind Kejriwal at an earlier meeting as the Opposition's Prime Ministerial candidate.
For Mr Kumar, it was the other big letdown since he was counting on being projected for the job, sources earlier told NDTV.
While announcing the break-up over the weekend, Mr Kumar had said he was unhappy with the way things were progressing at the Opposition camp.
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