Maharajganj sealed the fate of BJP, JD(U)

The JD(U)’s defeat in the Maharajganj Lok Sabha bypoll, the BJP’s sweep in the Gujarat byelections and Gujarat CM Narendra Modi’s elevation in the saffron party hierarchy were the ostensible reasons for the split between the two partners in Bihar. Mammen Matthew reports.

The JD(U)’s defeat in the Maharajganj Lok Sabha bypoll, the BJP’s sweep in the Gujarat byelections and Gujarat CM Narendra Modi’s elevation in the saffron party hierarchy were the ostensible reasons for the split between the two partners in Bihar. Had the Maharajganj bypoll been held at any other time and not with the Gujarat bypolls, the outcome could have been different.

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The loss at Maharajganj also put the JD(U) on the defensive, with the reactions ranging from being dismissive to one of resignation.

However, Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar’s take was that BJP and JD(U) workers had worked hard, that even when they were together in 2010 the seat had been lost, that the NDA had increased its vote percentage from 33% to 34%, etc.

It was significant that the JD(U) had pitched for LK Advani to retain his clout within the BJP and when he took back his resignation from the party positions , the only bridge cementing the alliance had collapsed. From then, there was just one way to go for the JD(U), which it did.