As chief ministers of Bihar they enjoyed the perks and benefits of being in power. And now, even though they no longer enjoy the power, Lalu Prasad Yadav, Rabri Devi, Nitish Kumar, Jagannath Mishra and Ram Sunder Das, will be entitled to retain a few benefits.
Unprecedented chaos erupted inside the Bihar assembly on Tuesday when police was called inside to assist the marshals in evicting unruly opposition members who tried to physically prevent the Speaker from taking his Chair.
The RJD leader, who is the Mahagathbandhan's chief ministerial face, said that if voted to power, providing jobs to unemployed youth would be his topmost priority.
The success story written by Nitish Kumar in Bihar has not gone unnoticed in the neighbouring Uttar Pradesh where his counterpart chief minister Mayawati appears to be getting serious about governance.
Will Jayalalithaa fill the vacuum created after Nitish Kumar's exit from BJP-led NDA? Why the UPA government's Cabinet reshuffle ended with a whimper... Why the food security bill was stalled at the last moment... All this and more in this week's Dilli Gupshup.
Union minister Pashupati Kumar Paras on Saturday said he will contest the next Lok Sabha polls from Hajipur, rebuffing his nephew Chirag Paswan who has staked claim on late father Ram Vilas Paswan's constituency.
Cracks are widening within Bihar BJP with more party legislators coming in the open and alleging lack of inner democracy with one MLA openly vouching for Chief Minister Nitish Kumar saying he would serve as a better prime minister.
Former Union minister RCP Singh on Thursday rued the "witch hunt" in the Janata Dal-United which he felt had resulted in many of his loyalists being sacked after the impression grew that he has ceased to be in the good books of Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar.
Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's demand for special-category status still looks a far cry.
Are these tableaus meant to clearly convey the message that Amitbhai -- and and not anyone else -- will be Narendrabhai's successor if the Pradhan Sevak ever decided to retire either as prime minister (if he wins the next general election, that is) or as BJP supremo?
'Commentators have said that dealing with allies as equals will make Modi more sensitive.' 'Remember that the people Modi is dealing with are equally autocratic in their own lairs.' 'Further, Modi always has handy the threat of dissolving Parliament and calling for fresh polls.' 'Most of his own party, and certainly his allies and opponents having blown their budgets of efforts and resources in the just concluded elections, have no stomach for this.' 'They are all greatly looking forward to the loaves and fishes of office on offer.' 'That gives Modi an unbeatable advantage in any push-comes-to-shove situation,' explains Shreekant Sambrani.
Ahead of the assembly polls in Rajasthan, the Congress government on Saturday night issued an order for the conduct of a caste survey in the state.
Tejashwi Yadav on Friday called out Union Minister Giriraj Singh for sharing an "edited video" of an interview to suggest that the young Rashtriya Janata Dal leader was going back on his promise to create 10 lakh jobs in the state.
The decision is expected to provide a push for their development in healthcare, cultural identity, education, financial matters, skill development and women empowerment among others, the Chief Minister's Office said in a statement.
Anna Hazare's anti-corruption wave seems to have hit the Janata Dal-United government in Bihar with a party MLA accusing a senior minister of being corrupt and calling for the latter's removal from the state Cabinet.
As Bihar awaits the results in the much-awaited polls, Rediff.com takes a look at some of those leaders who won and lost.
After women, now grandchildren of freedom fighters in Bihar will get two percent reservation in all government jobs.
JD-U leader Sharad Yadav speaks about the recent crisis in Bihar
With some variations, all regional political formations, whether in power presently or out of it, share some common features: Tight family control of the political apparatus, key members in elected or appointed positions, obvious wealth but not quite known sources of income, and family factionalism, sometimes open and bitter, notes Shreekant Sambrani.
Shinde said some people took an "adamant stand" after the polls which implied that they didn't want to form a government with the BJP despite both the parties winning the mandate of the people and resolving the issue of the post of the CM.
The delegation told Shinde that Samata Party was an old political outfit from Bihar and 'mashaal' (flaming torch) was its election symbol.
In yet another controversial remark, Bihar Chief Minister Jitan Ram Manjhi on Monday sought to justify Maoists extorting levy from contractors who, he suggested, were indulging in corruption and looting the state.
Rural Development Minister Raghuvansh Prasad Singh was forced by an agitated Opposition and Speaker Somnath Chatterjee to withdraw his un-parliamentary remarks against Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar.
Under the policy recently cleared by the Bihar cabinet, persons having more than two children will be debarred from contesting elections for local bodies.
The judge also asked why the official got suspended on his latest assignment and the deponent said he was caught by the vigilance department.
Among the major political parties, chief minister Nitish Kumar's Janata Dal-United is contesting in 35 of the 71 seats, followed by its ally Bharatiya Janata Party (29), while the opposition Rashtriya Janata Dal has fielded its candidates in 42 and its coalition partner Congress is in the fray in 20 assembly segments.
Asking the people of Bihar to bring their own government to power, the post made a veiled reference to the alleged high handedness of bureaucracy under the JD(U)-BJP rule but fell shy of a frontal attack on Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, his arch rival, or the near hegemonic saffron party which considers him a bete noire.
If Modi wants to leave a real legacy, breaking India's strategic triangulation would be the real gift, notes Shekhar Gupta.
The seat had fallen vacant following the death of Chirag Paswan's father and Lok Janshakti Party founder Ram Vilas Paswan. The BJP has nominated former Bihar deputy chief minister Sushil Kumar Modi for the seat.
Manjhi is alleged involved in a racket involving granting of irregular recognition to teachers' training institutes.
While Narendra Modi addresses rally after rally in Bihar, Shatrughan Sinha has been left out of the BJP's campaign.
"We will also approach the Election Commission with the claim that we represent the real RLSP and we enjoy the support of most workers and office-bearers in the party," Shyam said making it clear that the RLSP was heading towards a split.
Releasing the manifesto titled 'Badlav Ka Sankalp' (commitment to change) in the presence of All India Congress Committee (AICC) general secretary Randeep Singh Surjewala and other Mahagathbandhan leaders, Tejashwi Yadav said their government, if elected, would first approve the process for appointments on about 10 lakh jobs in the government.
With the Bihar government releasing the findings of its caste survey, pressure seems to be mounting on the Karnataka government, especially within the ruling Congress, to make the state's Socio-economic and Educational Census, popularly known as the 'caste census', public.
Singh was widely regarded as an expert in the rural and agricultural landscape of the country and is credited with the conceptualisation and implementation of the NREGA (National Rural Guarantee Employment) Act.
Terms of the two dozen seats had expired last year though elections were deferred because of a delay in Panchayat polls which could not be held in time on account of the COVID 19 pandemic.
Chief ministers and other senior leaders made last-minute appeals to voters for their support in Mokama and Gopalganj of Bihar, Adampur of Haryana, Manugoda of Telangana, Gola Gorakhnath of Uttar Pradesh and Dhamnagar of Odisha.
What some of our leaders were up to on Monday and Tuesday.
© 2026 Rediff.com - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances