Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar
Credit: PTI File Photo
Patna: With the party tipped to face a crucial test in next year's state assembly polls, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's JD(U) is reaching out to its old lieutenants, hoping that they would help revitalise the organisation.
Kumar, who has always been the undisputed supreme leader of the party and its national president for some time, has entrusted the job to Manish Kumar Verma, a close aide who joined the JD(U) recently.
"The JD(U) traces its origins to the Samata Party, floated in 1994 to offer an alternative in Bihar which was on the cusp of a social revolution following Mandal, but was reeling under lawlessness, corruption and all-round misgovernance. We are making it a point to honour those who had joined that movement then," Verma told PTI here.
Notably, Kumar had co-founded the Samata Party with late George Fernandes as the two leaders had grown unhappy with then Bihar Chief Minister Lalu Prasad who was fast emerging as the de facto leader of Janata Dal.
About a decade later, the Samata Party merged with Janata Dal (United), another splinter group of Janata Dal led by Sharad Yadav and the new entity went on to win the state assembly polls, in alliance with the BJP, in 2005 with Kumar as the chief minister.
"During my ongoing tour of the state, I am making it a point to felicitate those who had joined the Samata Party with the selfless aim of bringing a change. Back then, we were many years away from coming to power," Verma said.
"Now, with our leader firmly in saddle as the longest-serving CM, we must give recognition to those whose blood, sweat and tears made it possible", said Verma.
He added the veterans seemed touched by the gesture.
"They assure us of blessings in 2025, when they look forward to actively helping us. Needless to say, we stand to gain a lot from their wealth of experience," Verma said.
The former bureaucrat, who was made a national general secretary within weeks of induction into the party earlier this year, is holding workers' conclaves (karyakarta samaagam) to ensure "better coordination between the government and organisation".
"The first karyakarta samagam was held at Muzaffarpur on September 25. So far, we have covered seven districts. We intend to cover all 38 districts of the state by the time we wind up at Nalanda in January," said Verma.
Incidentally, both Kumar and Verma have their roots in Nalanda, a veritable stronghold of the JD(U) where people have been voting for the party in assembly and parliamentary elections for long.
Verma, who resigned from the coveted IAS a few years ago, said, "Another key component of our efforts to strengthen the party down to the booth level is Bihar Samvad which entails interactions with intellectuals and people from other walks of life in districts we are touring".
The party is collecting feedback on people's perceptions of the government and their future expectations, he said.
"Both, common people and party workers are being encouraged to come forward with suggestions", said the 50-year-old who is being seen in a section of the media as a possible successor to septuagenarian Kumar.
Social engineering is also high on the list of priorities of the bureaucrat-turned-politician, who is making it a point, during the tour to break bread with supporters hailing from underprivileged groups, especially Dalits and Economically Backward Classes.
"The response from supporters has been electrifying so far. They are excited over the possibility of JD(U) reclaiming the position of the King in Bihar politics in 2025", said Verma.
Once the senior partner in the ruling NDA, the JD(U) was mortified at its debacle in 2020 when it won less than 45 seats of the 243-strong assembly and finished a distant third after rival RJD and ally BJP.
However, the party got a new lease of life in the recent Lok Sabha polls when it bagged 12 seats, as many as the BJP but with a better strike rate, and emerged as the proverbial kingmaker with the saffron party falling short of a majority.