JD-U plans party renaming: What is behind the move?

The Janata Dal-United is contemplating a significant rebranding to 'JD-U-Nitish', a move that underscores Nitish Kumar's enduring influence but also sparks speculation of an internal party split from rival RJD.

The Janata Dal-United on Friday said it was considering a suggestion to rename the more than two-decade-old party as 'JD-U-Nitish', in deference to its supreme leader and former Bihar chief minister.

The suggestion came from JD-U working president Sanjay Kumar Jha, who was heard in a viral video clip, purportedly recorded a couple of days ago, saying the party owed its standing to Nitish Kumar and that its ideology was based on his political philosophy.

"We should therefore consider renaming the party as JD-U-Nitish," Jha was heard saying in the clip.

Key Leaders Back Renaming Proposal

Deputy Chief Minister Bijendra Prasad Yadav and minister Shrawon Kumar, both close aides of the JD(U) supremo since the days when the outfit was known as the Samata Party, backed the proposal.

Asked about Jha's statement, Yadav, a former state president of the JD-U, said, "It is a very good suggestion. Let there be a formal discussion on the matter so that a decision could be taken." Shrawon Kumar, who, like Nitish Kumar, is a Kurmi from Nalanda, said, "There could not have been a better proposal. I suggest that a formal resolution be brought by the party at the earliest. It is bound to be passed unanimously."

Nitish Kumar's Enduring Influence In JD(U)

Notably, the JD-U had come into being in 2003, following the merger of the eponymous outfit, then headed by veteran socialist leader Sharad Yadav, with the Samata Party.

Sharad Yadav remained the JD-U's national president till 2016, though all along Nitish Kumar was considered the de facto party leader.

Kumar formally took over as the national president in 2016, a year before Yadav was elbowed out of the party.

He gave up the top party post in 2020, when his close aide RCP Singh, a bureaucrat-turned-politician, became the national president.

Accepting a cabinet berth in the Union government without taking Kumar into confidence caused Singh to be replaced as national president by Rajiv Ranjan Singh "Lalan", another key aide who is currently a central minister.

However, Lalan, too, stepped down as party president in 2023, when Kumar got re-elected to the top party post, which he continues to hold, even as the septuagenarian has ceased to be politically as active as in the past.

In April this year, Kumar gave up the post of chief minister, after having held it for two decades, and got elected to the Rajya Sabha.

His reclusive son Nishant has become a minister in the new Bharatiya Janata Party-led government.

RJD Alleges Impending Party Split

Meanwhile, the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), which is headed by the JD-U supremo's archrival Lalu Prasad, claimed that the proposal to rename the party indicated that it was "heading for a split".

RJD MLA Bhai Virendra said, "It is amusing to see such a suggestion coming from those who have been destroying the JD(U) from within to help the BJP". Notably, a section of JD-U leaders has been alleging that Jha, who started with the BJP, and Lalan, who anxiously guards his Union cabinet berth, have been acting as "agents" of the saffron party. Bhai Virendra also claimed that "In two or three months, you shall see a split in the JD(U). One of the splinter groups may then assume the name JD(U) Nitish. The ongoing developments are pointing in that direction".