PATNA: The Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), the main opposition party in Bihar, received a shot in the arm on Wednesday when four MLAs of Asaduddin Owaisi`s AIMIM joined the party. With the entry of Shahnawaz Alam from Jokihat, Izhar Asfi from Kochadhaman, Anzar Nayeemi from Bahadurganj, and Syed Ruknuddin Ahmed from Baiasi, RJD’s strength has gone up to 80, making it the largest party.
The BJP (77) is next, while the Janata Dal-United (JD-U), with 45 MLAs, is at distant third position.
All the four MLAs were elected to the Assembly from the Muslim-dominated Seemanchal region of the state, leaving RJD stunned. The victory of five AIMIM MLASs in the last Assembly election had come as a surprise for many political observers.
Now, Owaisi’s party is left with only one MLA — Akhtarul Imam — who is also the state party president. The leader of Opposition, Tejashwi Yadav, drove the legislators to the state Assembly and met speaker Vijay Kumar Sinha to complete the formalities.
Tejashwi told mediapersons that RJD has always had a special affection for Seemanchal, and now the party has regained a strong presence in the region. Imam said the four MLAs who quit AIMIM not only cheated the party but also the poor people of Seemanchal. Equating them with Mir Jafar, he said, “RJD would have to pay a heavy price for weaning his party`s MLAs as people of Seemanchal are deeply hurt by such an act.”
On the other hand, the former AIMIM MLAs defended their decision to join RJD, saying, “Since RJD is the largest secular party in the state, we want to strengthen it and work for the betterment of Seemanchal.”
After re-emerging as the single largest party, RJD will have a psychological edge over the ruling NDA at a time when BJP and JD-U are engaged in a war of supremacy. In such a situation, it is speculated that a political realignment could brew in the state.