JD(U) names Sanjay Jha working president, seeks special category status or package for Bihar
New Delhi, Jun 29: The Janata Dal (United) on Saturday appointed Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Kumar Jha as its working president and urged the Centre to consider either special category status or special package for Bihar, underlining the party's important role in the formation of the Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government.
The party's national executive meeting chaired by its president and Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar flagged price rise and unemployment as "burning issues", as its political resolution expressed confidence that the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government would take more effective steps to handle them.
The resolution called for extensive probe into paper leak cases to ensure stringent action against the guilty so as to maintain the credibility of central competitive exams.
There is also a need for Parliament to enact a strong law against leaks of examination papers, it added.
Kumar's decision to appoint his confidant as the party's working president, a position not held by anyone, suggests his efforts to maintain better coordination with the BJP and draw a helpful bargain as Jha enjoys good ties with the national party's leadership.
A former minister in Bihar, Jha was originally in the BJP and served as its link with Kumar before crossing over to the JD(U).
Seen as competent, likeable and low-key, the Mithilanchal leader has long been a trusted aide of his ageing mentor who has burnt his fingers in the past due to shifting loyalties of his ostensibly reliable colleagues, including former JD(U) president RCP Singh, now in the BJP.
Party sources said Kumar would expect Jha to maintain smooth relations with the BJP while working to get a positive response to his party's demands, including aid to Bihar.
The JD(U)'s decision to include a special package as an alternative to its historical push for special category status for Bihar marked a pragmatic climbdown as the Modi government had cited the 14th Finance Commission's report to rule out special category status for any more states.
Following his appointment, Jha said his party's purpose was to get central assistance for Bihar to build on the foundation laid by the Kumar-led government since 2005, except for a short period when Jitan Ram Manjhi was chief minister.
"It does not matter in what name such a help is given. We will pursue it with the central government and are hopeful for a positive outcome," he said.
Asserting that everything would remain cordial between the BJP and the JD(U), he said the two parties were natural allies.
The NDA will win more than 200 seats in the 2025 assembly polls, he said, noting that the alliance had leads in 177 of the 243 assembly segments in the recent Lok Sabha elections.
The Lok Sabha poll results, in which the JD(U) won 12 seats in Bihar, showed people's approval for Kumar, Jha said, taking a swipe at those who thought the chief minister's political career was on a downward spiral.
The JD(U)'s resolution said its responsibility and people's expectations had risen due to the party's participation in the central government. The party has two ministers in the Modi government.
The resolution called for more active and qualitative reforms in the fields of education, health care, agriculture, environment, social welfare, women's empowerment and national security.
Expressing concern over the recent Patna High Court judgment striking down the Bihar government's decision to increase reservation for SCs, STs and OBCs to 65 per cent from 50 per cent, the JD(U) urged the Centre to put the state's law in the Constitution's 9th Schedule to rule out its judicial review.
The resolution praised Kumar's political acumen and positive strategy, saying he played an important role in the running of the NDA government in Bihar and formation of the central government at the Centre under Modi's leadership.
It said people re-elected a government at the Centre that worked for national interest.
Another resolution passed at the national executive stressed on the need for strengthening the party's organisation in states going to assembly polls, while mentioning Jharkhand. It noted that JD(U) candidates had contested and won elections in the state.
It will seriously work on its election strategy and put up candidates there, the resolution said.
Sources said the JD(U) would nudge the BJP to leave a few seats for its candidates.
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Cong takes swipe at PM over India not being part of US-led 'Pax Silica' grouping
New Delh (PTI) The Congress on Saturday said it is perhaps not very surprising that India is not part of a US-led strategic initiative to build a secure silicon supply chain, given the "sharp downturn" in the Trump-Modi ties, and asserted that it would have been to "our advantage if we had been part of this group".
Congress general secretary in charge of communications Jairam Ramesh took a swipe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying the news of India not being part of the group comes after the PM had enthusiastically posted on social media about a telephone call with his "once-upon-a-time good friend and a recipient of many hugs in Ahmedabad, Houston, and Washington DC".
In a lengthy post on X, Ramesh said, "According to some news reports, the US has excluded India from a nine-nation initiative it has launched to reduce Chinese control on high-tech supply chains. The agreement is called Pax Silica, clearly as a counter to Pax Sinica. The nations included (for the moment at least) are the US, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Singapore, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Israel, the United Arab Emirates, and Australia."
"Given the sharp downturn in the Trump-Modi ties since May 10th, 2025, it is perhaps not very surprising that India has not been included. Undoubtedly, it would have been to our advantage if we had been part of this group."
"This news comes a day after the PM had enthusiastically posted on his telephone call with his once-upon-a-time good friend and a recipient of many hugs in Ahmedabad, Houston, and Washington DC," the Congress leader asserted.
The new US-led strategic initiative, rooted in deep cooperation with trusted allies, has been launched to build a secure and innovation-driven silicon supply chain.
According to the US State Department, the initiative called 'Pax Silica' aims to reduce coercive dependencies, protect the materials and capabilities foundational to artificial intelligence (AI), and ensure aligned nations can develop and deploy transformative technologies at scale.
The initiative includes Japan, South Korea, Singapore, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Israel, the United Arab Emirates, and Australia. With the exception of India, all other QUAD countries -- Japan, Australia and the US -- are part of the new initiative.
New Delhi will host the India-AI Impact Summit 2026 on February 19-20, focusing on the principles of 'People, Planet, and Progress'. The summit, announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the France AI Action Summit, will be the first-ever global AI summit hosted in the Global South.
Prime Minister Modi and US President Trump on Thursday discussed ways to sustain momentum in the bilateral economic partnership in a phone conversation amid signs of the two sides inching closer to firming up a much-awaited trade deal.
The phone call between the two leaders came on a day Indian and American negotiators concluded two-day talks on the proposed bilateral trade agreement that is expected to provide relief to India from the Trump administration's whopping 50 per cent tariffs on Indian goods.
In a social media post, Modi had described the conversation as "warm and engaging".
"We reviewed the progress in our bilateral relations and discussed regional and international developments. India and the US will continue to work together for global peace, stability and prosperity," Modi had said without making any reference to trade ties.
