Nitish Kumar steps down as Bihar CM, to form government soon

Patna: Following tension in Grand Alliance, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Wednesday submitted his resignation to the Governor Kesari Nath Tripathi, saying, it was not possible to continue in Grand Alliance after charges against Deputy CM Tejashwi Yadav. Nitish's big move came after JD(U)’s legislative meet on Wednesday.

Nitish Kumar is all set to stake claim to form government in Bihar shortly with BJP's support.

"I have tendered my resignation to the Governor for the sake of Bihar people. Governor has accepted my resignation," said Nitish Kumar as Grand Alliance collapsed.

Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) has hinted that the party would welcome a BJP-JDU alliance in the state.

When Nitish was asked about alliance with BJP, he said, "Let's see what happens next."

What else Nitish Kumar said after stepping down from the top post:

• It was not possible to work in this environment, I tried to found out a solution.
• It became difficult to run the grand alliance government.
• Governor has accepted my resignation, and asked me to continue working until the next development.
• I am not blaming anyone, those who want to blame me are free to do so.
• It would have been unfair, if I had not taken a stand. I listened to my conscience.

Hours after RJD chief Lalu Prasad Yadav ruled out the resignation of his son and deputy CM Tejashwi Yadav over a corruption scam on Wednesday, Nitish had met Bihar Governor KN Tripathi in Raj Bhawan to quit as Bihar CM.

BJP MP RK Singh said that there is no administration in Bihar for the last 3 years. "If Nitish asks for assistance then party will consider it," he said.

Welcoming Nitish's move, Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated former, saying, "I want to congratulate Nitish for joining fight against corruption."

"People of India and Bihar are happy and welcoming Nitish's decision, which came rising above political differences." he added.

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https://twitter.com/narendramodi/status/890204996884545536

Janata Dal national spokesperson KC Tyagi said that Nitish Kumar was forced to quit because Tejashwi Yadav was not ready to resign. "We were not allowed to work independently," he added.

It may be mentioned here that Nitish wanted Tejaswi Yadav to step down as deputy chief minister. RLD, however, had claimed it as saffron party's attempt to break the alliance.

Ptiching in support to Nitish Kumar, BJP's Sushil Modi said, "we are happy that our CM had not compromised on corruption, we welcome this move."

Lalu, Rabri and Tejashwi have been booked by the CBI in a corruption case that dates back to 2005 when the RJD chief was the Union Railway Minister.

The case has dealt a big blow to the Bihar Mahagathbandhan with Nitish’s JD(U) pressing on Tejashwi’s resignation and the RJD and Congress opposed to the move.