Jitan Ram Manjhi worried over defections in Bihar

The new turn of events in Bihar politics has left smaller political parties 'worried' about their existence. This could be gauged from Jitan Ram Manjhi's statement on Thursday. He said, "In politics, anything can happen. Who will go with whom--- is difficult to answer."

Patna: Following the entry of three VIP MLAs into the BJP fold, the 'pressure tactic' in Bihar political arena has stopped for quite some time. Among the NDA partners, Vikassheel Insaan Party's Mukesh Sahani has been 'defanged', another coalition partner in Bihar NDA, Jitan Ram Manjhi of Hindustan Awam Morcha (HAM) who also used to put pressure on the Bihar NDA Alliance government some way or the other. Now, this new turn of events could work as a warning for Manjhi.

On several occasions, Manjhi had threatened to pull the rug from under the Bihar NDA coalition government. He had once accepted that 'power' played an important role in putting 'pressure tactic'. Now, the situation has turned diametrically opposite. With the four MLAs, Manjhi used to give a veiled warning that 'options' are open. Now, the NDA coalition government in Bihar has attained the majority.

Out of 243 seats in the Bihar assembly, BJP has gained 77 seats and JD(U) has 45. Hence, the combined strength of Bihar NDA coalition partners has touched the majority mark of 122. When asked even the Hindustan Awam Morch (HAM) MLAs could join the BJP fold, Jitan Ram Manjhi said, "In politics, anything can happen. Who will go with whom--- is difficult to answer."