Will Nitish Kumar’s son enter politics? JD(U) leaders keep cards close to their chest

A senior JD(U) leader said Nishant’s involvement in party affairs was “limited”, confined only to “certain public events with his father”.

“As of now, he is not involved in party affairs. He does not participate in party meetings. We have not received any indication so far from Nitish ji that Nishant will be ushered into politics soon,” the leader said.

The leader, however, added that it would not be “a bad idea” if Nishant entered politics but cautioned that the Opposition would be highly critical of Nitish, whose main plank over the years has been against dynasty politics.

“Nitish ji has never promoted dynasty politics and he makes it a point to underline this in public speeches. He also uses dynasty politics to criticise the Opposition in a state where (Rashtriya Janata Dal chief) Lalu Prasad has passed on the baton to his son (Tejashwi Prasad Yadav).”

The leader admitted that the JD(U) was at a crossroads and had to “prepare for a future beyond Nitish Kumar”. “Speculations around his son entering politics will only help the party keep its rank and file committed,” the leader said.

Another party leader said while Nitish Kumar had made the JD(U) a formidable force in Bihar and retained power for 20 years, “he has not nurtured a future leadership”.

“The caste equation and the nature of Bihar politics is such that only a face from the backward classes can lead a party or hold the reins of power in the state. But the JD(U) top leadership, be it Rajiv Ranjan Singh or Sanjay Jha, are mostly from the upper caste. No OBC (Other Backward Classes) or EBC (Extremely Backward Classes) leadership with pan-state appeal has been nurtured by Nitish Kumar. In such a scenario, the party is looking at an uncertain future after Nitish Kumar’s era is over. If Nishant joins politics, the party may end up following the path of other regional parties, but at least it will get a new lease of life,” the leader said.

Another leader said too much was being read into Nishant’s public appearances that have fuelled the speculation about his political debut.

“Nitish is getting old and also not in the prime of his health. Generally, at such junctures of life one comes closer to the family. We see Nitish ji getting more involved with his son’s personal affairs as well these days. Perhaps, it is father and son rediscovering a new bond at a personal level. Having said that, if Nishant is ready to take his father’s legacy forward, it will only benefit the party,” the leader said.

The speculation about Nishant’s entry into politics started in January in the backdrop of his frequent visibility with his father at public events.

Having avoided the limelight so far, his interactions with the media have gained attention. Last week, he even demanded that the NDA must declare his father the CM candidate before the Bihar polls that will be held later this year.

On his part, Nishant has not clearly stated his political ambitions.

The only son of Nitish and his late wife Manju Sinha, 48-year-old Nishant has mostly kept away from the limelight despite spending most of his time in Patna.

A computer science graduate from the Birla Institute of Technology, Mesra, he had been understood to be reluctant to join politics till now.

But the speculation around his political plunge has been welcomed both by the NDA and the Opposition, with the consensus opinion being that educated youth must join politics.

Yet, if Nishant does join the JD(U), it is unlikely the Opposition will not remind Nitish Kumar of all his criticism of dynasty politics.

Only last month, a local Congress leader from Harnaut, an Assembly constituency in Nalanda, which is being rumoured to be Nishant’s pick for the coming polls in case he joins politics, put up posters with Nishant’s image and a caption that read: “Raja ka beta raja nahi banega (The king’s son will not become king).”