Bihar CM Manjhi calls cabinet meet, supporters protest

Mr. Manjhi had earlier called the party legislature meeting as “unauthorized and unconstitutional” and had summoned a separate meeting of party legislature on February 20

Ahead of the crucial party legislature meeting called by ruling Janata Dal-United president Sharad Yadav at 4 pm on Saturday, Bihar Chief Minister Jitan Ram Manjhi surprised his rival camp by calling meeting of his Cabinet ministers at 2 pm on Saturday. The State unit of the BJP too is scheduled to meet at 12 pm to chalk out their strategy.

Mr. Manjhi had earlier called the party legislature meeting as “unauthorized and unconstitutional” and had summoned a separate meeting of party legislature on February 20. All those ministers and legislators belonging to Mr Manjhi’s camp have now started reaching his official residence 1, Anne Marg on Saturday morning. “We’re solidly behind the Chief Minister and if he will be removed from his post we’ll go to poll”, party MLA and Manjhi’s ardent camp follower Gyanendra Singh Gyanu told The Hindu.

Reacting to party general secretary and Rajya Sabha member K. C. Tyagi’s comment that now Mr. Manjhi has no constitutional right to call the Cabinet meeting as he has lost support of majority, senior JD-U leader and Brishan Patel asked, “Who is K. C. Tyagi to make such decision…Is he the Governor of Bihar?”.

Keeping a close watch on the fast-changing political developments in the State, the BJP too had called meeting of its party leaders and legislators at the residence of senior state party leader Sushil Kumar Modi at his official residence 1, Polo Road at 12 pm. Meanwhile, supporters of Jitan Ram Manjhi have come out on streets in Makhdumpur, his assembly constituency, and started protesting against party president’s move to oust him from the post of Chief Minister. Shouting slogans against party president Sharad Yadav and Nitish Kumar they also blocked Jehanabad-Gaya road in Shakurabad causing inconvenience to traffic movement.

All eyes in the political corridor of the state are now fixed on the Cabinet meeting called by the Chief Minister and the party legislature meet called by his rival camp thereafter. Both the groups have been claiming to have enough support in their favour to prove majority. Mr. Tyagi on Saturday morning claimed to have support of as many as 130 party MLAs in their favour which was strongly refuted by rival camp leader Gyanendra Singh Gyanu. “Just wait for some time more you all will come to know who is going to stay and who will have to leave the battlefield”. However, pregnant silence made by the man behind all these political rift and developments in the state has baffled everyone.