Nitish to be elected as NDA leader in Bihar on Wednesday
Patna (PTI): JD(U) supremo Nitish Kumar is set to be elected as the leader of the NDA in Bihar on Wednesday, ahead of the formation of the new government under his leadership in the state on November 20, a party leader said.
Kumar, who will take oath as Bihar CM for a record 10th time at Patna's historic Gandhi Maidan on Thursday, will be first elected as leader of the JD(U) legislature party and then the leader of the NDA during a meeting of the constituents of the five-party alliance, he said.
Talking to PTI Video, JD(U) working national president Sanjay Jha said, "Nitish Kumar will be first elected as leader of our legislature party on Wednesday. After that, he will be elected as NDA leader by the newly elected MLAs of all alliance partners."
Kumar will meet Governor Arif Mohammad Khan in the evening, requesting him to initiate the process for the formation of the new government, the JD(U) leader said.
He will also tender his resignation to the governor as the head of the outgoing government, another JD(U) leader said.
Kumar will also submit a letter of support from all NDA constituents to the governor for the formation of the new government, he said.
The current assembly will be dissolved on Wednesday, he said.
Several ministers will also take the oath along with the CM on Thursday.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, several other union ministers and CMs of NDA-ruled states are expected to attend the swearing-in ceremony.
A large number of security personnel have been deployed in the state capital and around Gandhi Maidan, officials said.
The NDA stormed back to power in Bihar, winning 202 seats in the 243-member assembly, with BJP bagging 89, JD(U) 85, LJP(RV) 19, HAM 5 and RLM 4.
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Women's quota bill would have ensured defeat of democracy, Constitution: Aaditya Thackeray
Mumbai (PTI): Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Aaditya Thackeray on Saturday said that the passage of the women's quota bill would have ensured a "total defeat of democracy", alleging that the legislation, linked with a delimitation exercise, was a political tool designed to reduce the voice of states.
Thackeray, in a post on X, claimed that the Bill would have amended the Constitution for the political means of the ruling regime to increase seats, reduce the voice of many states and enable the gerrymandering of constituencies to ensure unfair victories.
"The very amendment that would have ensured the total defeat of democracy and the Constitution in India stands rejected by the unity of the Opposition MPs," he wrote.
The legislation should have been called "Delimitation to ensure unfair victory Bill", the former minister said, adding that there was a genuine need to enable 33 per cent reservation for women in the current number of seats.
"Now, it is up to the government to ensure that it is implemented in the 543 seats of the Lok Sabha for the 2029 elections and all elections across India, if that is the real intent of the government," he wrote.
A Constitution Amendment Bill to implement reservation for women in legislatures in 2029 and increase the number of Lok Sabha seats was defeated on Friday in the Lower House.
While 298 members voted in support of the Bill, 230 MPs voted against it. Out of 528 members who voted, the Bill required 352 votes for a two-thirds majority.
According to the Constitution Amendment Bill, Lok Sabha seats were to be increased to a maximum of 850 from the current 543 to "operationalise" the women's reservation law before the 2029 parliamentary polls, following a delimitation exercise based on the 2011 Census.
