Why JD(U) is stepping up for Nitish Kumar legacy

JD(U) national working president and Rajya Sabha MP, Sanjay Kumar Jha, has intermittently led the party’s campaign against the Farakka barrage.

Last week, JD(U) state president Umesh Kushwaha announced that party leaders would also visit all 38 districts to “celebrate and review” Jeevika, the women’s self-employment and empowerment programme launched during Nitish’s chief ministerial tenure. The scheme currently has around 1.9 crore members in Bihar.

“We will be completing 20 years since the launch of Jeevika in Bihar. We are very happy and honoured that the Centre has replicated our model, calling it Aajeevika. We will visit every district to interact with Jeevika workers, get their feedback and see how Nitish Kumar’s dream project can be made even better,” Kushwaha said.

JD(U) chief spokesperson Neeraj Kumar said the party has launched “Nitish Samvad” on the Farakka issue because the party chief had consistently opposed the barrage.

“Even though new CM Choudhary and Deputy CM Vijay Kumar Sinha recently expressed concerns over floods and heavy siltation caused by the Farakka barrage, we are trying to add to the move to reaffirm and reinstate the big legacy and statesmanship of Nitish Kumar,” he said.

“Jeevika is one big project everyone talks about everywhere. Bihar now has the biggest female human resource force in the form of Jeevika. Nitish Kumar’s immense contribution towards women’s empowerment is reflected very well through this scheme,” he added.

Within the JD(U), however, there is also a view that Nitish’s son Nishant Kumar, the state Health Minister, should take on a larger organisational role. A senior party leader said Nishant should participate in the “Jeevika ke 20 Saal” campaign, which is scheduled to begin on October 2.

“We all know the future of JD(U) depends on how Nishant Kumar carries forward Nitish Kumar’s legacy and comes off as an impressive leader in his own right. He should attend the ‘Jeevika ke 20 Saal’ campaign being launched on October 2,” the leader said.

“He is performing well as health minister and doing constant reviews of hospitals, but he should also be there on the ground for big party campaigns,” the leader added.

Cautious on UCC

The JD(U) has adopted a cautious position on the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) issue following Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s recent announcement that the UCC will be implemented in all 21 BJP-led NDA ruled states before the 2029 Lok Sabha elections. The row over the UCC may have implications for the JD(U)’s relationship with the BJP.

“We will first read the draft (UCC) and then decide. Our national working president Sanjay Jha has already said that he would meet the Home Minister on it,” Sinha told reporters Tuesday.

The JD(U) did not refer to its earlier submission to the National Law Commission, in which it had argued that certain religious practices and traditions should be kept outside the ambit of the UCC.

Nitish had previously underlined the need for broad national consensus on the UCC issue before its implementation.

A BJP leader said the JD(U)’s renewed emphasis on Jeevika was also linked to the political importance of its women voters. “Everyone knows that Nitish Kumar created a big constituency of women. We also acknowledge that the Rs 10,000 grant to Jeevika workers in the last Assembly elections played a big role in our victory. JD(U) perhaps now looks keen on retaining this big constituency and is showing some desperation as well with BJP having its CM now. We too have cultivated the women’s constituency in a big way. It is a healthy fight between allies,” the leader said.