No confidence against the chairman before Nitish government’s vote of confidence | Political News – Business Standard
The Bihar Assembly on Friday made it clear that Speaker Awadh Bihari Chaudhary will have to face the ruling NDA’s no-confidence motion before the newly formed government seeks a confidence vote on February 12.
The Assembly Secretariat has released the House business agenda for Monday when the budget session will begin, with a customary address by the Governor to members of the bicameral legislature.
According to the agenda, which was unusually released earlier, the governor’s address will be preceded by a preliminary address to the assembly by the chairman.
Immediately after the governor’s address, the meeting will take up the proposal for the removal of the chairman, followed by Chief Minister Nitish Kumar seeking a confidence vote for the government.
Chaudhary belongs to the RJD, which lost power following Kumar’s abrupt exit from Mahagathbandhan and return to the BJP-led NDA.
Soon after the installation of the NDA government two weeks ago, a no-confidence motion was moved against Chaudhary by the ruling coalition.
Chaudhary has refused to step down as chairman, causing unrest in the NDA camp, which enjoys a slim majority and is wary of a confidence vote with an opposition party leader in the chairmanship.
The NDA, which includes an independent party and four MLAs from former CM Jitan Ram Manjhi’s Hindustani Awam Morcha, has a total strength of 128 members in the 243-member assembly.
The Mahagathbandhan, which consists of RJD, Congress and three Left parties, has 114 MLAs and is eight members short of majority. Member of Parliament from Hyderabad
Asaduddin Owaisi’s AIMIM has one MLA who has kept his cards close to his chest.
However, JD(U) leader and vice-chairman Maheshwar Hazari made it clear that as per the rules, the chairman will have to relinquish the chairmanship once a no-confidence motion is passed in the House.
Hazari said the proceedings would thereafter be led by the Deputy Speaker until the House elects a new Speaker.
The BJP, which has 78 MLAs against 45 of the chief minister’s JD(U), is likely to have one of its leaders as its president.
Kumar, who has ruled Bihar since 2005, except for an eight-month gap, had retained the post of president in his party until 2020, when the JD(U)’s numbers in the Assembly elections plummeted.
BJP leader Vijay Kumar Sinha, who was president from 2020 until Kumar’s sudden exit from the NDA two years later, is now deputy CM.
Senior BJP leaders Tarkishor Prasad, who served as deputy CM till 2022, and former state unit chief Nand Kishor Yadav are said to be in the race for the post of the new chairman.
(Only the headline and image of this report may have been reworked by Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is automatically generated from a syndicated feed.)
First print: February 9, 2024 | 10:10 PM IST