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Creation of Jharkhand may hit NDA govt in Patna

The creation of a separate state of Jharkhand, comprising 18 districts of South Bihar, has apparently become uncertain once again with the formation of a National Democratic Alliance government in Bihar.

Still struggling to garner the magic figure required to prove its majority on the floor of the house, the NDA, which has 40 members from South Bihar and is backed by another 12 of the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha-Soren from this region, would be reduced to a minority if South Bihar is bifurcated from the rest of the state for creating Jharkhand/Vananchal.

According to political observers, it is to be seen as to how this combine, which has taken over the arduous task of garnering the required majority, is able to honour its commitment to separate the 18 districts from the state, coming as it does with the prospect of parting with its 52 supporting members in the state assembly within the next six months, the deadline given by the NDA central leaders for the realisation of statehood.

On the other hand, the RJD, which had earlier opposed the formation of Jharkhand but has now gone soft on the issue, has nothing much to lose if the 18 districts, having 81 berths in the Bihar assembly, were bifurcated from the state, political observers feel. This is because the RJD has only nine seats from south bihar out of an individual strength of 123 in the state assembly.

In fact, barring the loss of face to the RJD for softening its stand on the bifurcation of Bihar, the party stood a gainer with its overall strength going up in the bifurcated house in the remaining parts of Bihar.

With bifurcation of the Bihar assembly to form the lower house in the proposed Vananchal/Jharkhand state, the strength of the NDA which, at present, stood at 122, would go down to 82 as it has 40 members from this region in the Bihar assembly.

However, with the creation of the state, the NDA, with 40 members, enjoys the possibility of forming the first interim government in the proposed new state on its own.

The Bihar State Reorganisation Bill 1999, which has been mooted by the Centre for the state's creation, has already been approved by the central cabinet and, after the presidential assent, sent to Bihar for ratification. The bill has to be returned by the state government with its opinion by March 14.

For Samata Party leader Nitish Kumar, who heads the NDA government in Bihar, it would be a real tough task to clear the bill while struggling for a majority in the state assembly.

UNI

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