© The Indian Express Pvt Ltd
Tags:
Journalism of Courage
Bihar Chief Minister and Janata Dal (United) supremo Nitish Kumar has often been critical of dynastic politics over the years, with one of his main planks against the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) and Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) being that they “promoted only family”. Kumar would also often say that “Bihar was his family”.
But now, the JD(U) might be gearing up to welcome a political heir into its fold ahead of the Assembly elections. JD(U) sources told The Indian Express that Kumar’s son Nishant Kumar was likely to join active politics after Holi. “He seems to be ready to join politics. It is only about getting the green signal from Nitish Kumar,” said a JD(U) source close to the CM. The source said Kumar had been informed of the “ever-growing demand from party workers” about Nishant’s entry into politics.
Over the last year, Nishant’s name has been doing the rounds within the JD(U). Initially, a few party workers demanded that Nishant join the party. However, senior leaders dismissed it and played it down. But Nishant’s name still kept coming up at regular intervals, with senior JD(U) functionaries refraining from speaking on the matter.
On January 8, 48-year-old Nishant, who has so far been behind the scenes, accompanied his father to their hometown of Bakhtiyarpur to unveil statues of freedom fighters. Speaking on the sidelines of the event, just a few steps away from his father, he told reporters: “If it is possible, please vote for the JD(U) and my father and bring him back (in the elections scheduled for later this year).”
This was his public appeal for the party. Before this, he was last seen at a political function at the time of his father’s oath-taking ceremony in 2015. A week after the event, senior JD(U) leader and minister Shravan Kumar dropped some hints about Nishant joining politics. “We welcome his (Nishant’s) statement. He has a fair understanding of the government of the day,” said Shravan Kumar. Asked if Nishant should join politics, the minister, who hails from CM’s home district of Nalanda, said, “Bilkul (of course). Youth with such progressive ideas are welcome in politics. The decision will be taken at the right time.”
Though the JD(U) officially did not speak on the matter, several party leaders spoke about his imminent entry into the party. “(RJD head) Lalu Prasad had projected his son Tejashwi Prasad Yadav as the next leader of the party in 2013. Ram Vilas Paswan also projected his son Chirag around the same time. It was Chirag who had been instrumental in bringing LJP to the NDA fold before the 2014 polls. That decision changed the political fortunes of the LJP. Similarly, Tejashwi had led the RJD-led Mahagathbandhan to 110 seats — only 12 short of a majority — in the 2020 Assembly polls,” a leader said. He added that if Nishant had joined politics a decade ago, “he could have been a natural heir to Nitish Kumar”.
“It is still not too late. We need to bring Nishant Kumar into the JD (U) fold for its future,” said another senior leader.
Nishant is the only son of Nitish Kumar and the late Manju Sinha. He is an engineering graduate from the Birla Institute of Technology in Mesra.
