PATNA, 10 April 2005 — Nitish Kumar of the Janata Dal-United (JD-U), who hoped to become Bihar’s chief minister, yesterday threw in the towel, blaming Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) chief and Steel Minister Ram Vilas Paswan for the impasse.

Causing a stir just hours after 16 of the 17 independent legislators from Bihar had pledged their support for him, Nitish Kumar announced: “I am withdrawing my efforts to form a government as chances (of forming a government) are bleak due to Paswan’s intransigence.”

He accused Paswan of thwarting all efforts to form a popular government with his refusal to become a partner in a non-Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) coalition. After the RJD failed to retain power in the February state polls, the opposition JD-U-Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) emerged as the biggest combine but fell far short of the required majority of 122 in the 243-member assembly.

Paswan’s LJP, which won 29 crucial seats, refused to tie up with either the RJD or BJP, causing a stalemate. The rival sides could not attain a majority without LJP’s support.

Nitish Kumar had proposed a common minimum program for government formation with possible coalition partners such as the LJP, Communist Party of India-Marxist-Leninist (CPI-ML), Samajwadi Party (SP), Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) and the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP).

President’s rule was imposed in the state after RJD failed to muster strength to form a government and then JD-U tried its best to persuade Paswan to accept a tie-up with the BJP. But Paswan insisted that JD-U dump the BJP and agree to a secular alliance of non-RJD parties including Congress.

Nitish Kumar’s announcement comes a day ahead of the JD-U’s two-day annual conclave.

Earlier, all but one independent legislators of Bihar announced their support for the JD-U leader’s efforts.

“We have decided to back Nitish Kumar to form a popular government to end president’s rule in Bihar,” said Babu Lal Rai, an independent legislator, after a meeting here.

Independent legislator Vijendra Choudhary confirmed Rai’s claim.

“All the independent legislators except one are backing Nitish Kumar,” said another legislator Jagdish Sharma. The independent legislators also accused Paswan of putting impossible conditions before Nitish Kumar.

Sharma said the committee set up by Paswan to explore ways of forming a government was an “eyewash”. “Paswan wants to delay the process of government formation so that president’s rule continues,” he said.

Paswan had set up the committee after talks with Nitish Kumar proved inconclusive.

The independent legislators said that they were in touch with the LJP’s upper caste legislators, who had threatened to part ways if Paswan did not make efforts to form a government.