Manjhi resigns, Nitish to be next Bihar CM: As it happened

Patna: Bihar Chief Minister Jitan Ram Manjhi on Friday resigned ahead of trust vote in Assembly. Here are the live updates from Bihar:

5:30 pm: Governor asked to prove majority on floor of the house in three weeks time before March 16: Nitish Kumar

5:30 pm: Governor has accepted our claim, and I will take oath as the CM of Bihar at 5pm on February 22: Nitish Kumar

5:30 pm: Governor has invited me to form government: Nitish Kumar  

5:20 pm: Mamata Banerjee congratulates Nitish Kumar from Bangladesh.

5:15 pm: Nitish Kumar's stint as Bihar CM to begin Sunday when he takes oath at 5 pm. 

5:00 pm: Nitish Kumar to take oath as Bihar CM on February 22.

4:45 pm: Nitish Kumar arrives at Raj Bhavan to meet Bihar governor Keshari Nath Tripathi.

3:06 pm: The entire incident has exposed Nitish Kumar. First he made Manjhi CM; now after eight months, he himself wants to become CM again – Sushil Modi

3:05 pm: BJP leader Sushil Kumar Modi is addressing a press conference.

2:08 pm: I had said I have chosen a senior colleague. Other people interpreted that I was making a 'Mahadalit' man CM, says Nitish in response to a question

2:05 pm: We have already staked claim to form government, Nitish in response to question on staking claim

2:02 pm: It is upon him to make his decision now, about what he wants to do - Nitish Kumar on Manjhi

2:00 pm: I want to thank all the parties who supported us amid all this, including Mamata Banerjee, Shiv Sena and BSP - Nitish

1:58 pm: I appeal to people of Bihar, don't get misled by BJP, they are power hungry - Nitish

1:55 pm: BJP used to play religion card earlier, now they are playing caste card - Nitish

1:55 pm: A person who sits on a constitutional post isn't identified by his caste - Nitish

1:53 pm: Mahadalit term coined by me only, BJP today trying to play caste card - Nitish

1:52 pm: I again admit I committed a mistake by resigning as CM. I seek forgiveness from the people of Bihar. I assure of good governance if I become CM again - Nitish

1:52 pm: If we get another chance to govern, we will work in the same manner and with the same pace with which worked for over eight years. We will provide governance - Nitish

1:51 pm: We had staked claim to form government earlier - Nitish

1:51 pm: I am ready to take up responsibility, awaiting Governor's decision - Nitish

1:50 pm: Today, they (BJP) have failed despite everything - Nitish

1:48 pm: I admitted it was a mistake to resign as CM in the wake of Lok Sabha poll loss - Nitish

1:47 pm: We and allies had advised Manjhi several times not to work according to BJP's game plan but he never listened - Nitish

1:47 pm: I have never interfered in Manjhi's working - Nitish

1:46 pm: Entire script of the drama written by BJP, says Nitish

1:44 pm: Every effort made to split JD(U). BJP leader Nand Kishore Yadav even said it was Manjhi's job to secure majority through 'jugaad' - Nitish

1:43 pm: Manjhi should have acted gracefully, should have resigned earlier if he didn't have majority, should have also respected party decision - Nitish

1:42 pm: What has been claimed by Manjhi at press conference today are laughable - Nitish

1:41 pm: The drama continued till last night. BJP fully involved in it - Nitish

1:39 pm: First of its kind event happened in India's parliamentary democracy that CM called the session but resigned ahead of Governor's address to the joint session of the Assembly.

1:37 pm: JD(U) leader Nitish Kumar is addressing a press conference.

12:00 noon: I have a long list of scams, would have exposed them had I got more time - Manjhi

11:55 am: I was surprised by Lalu Prasad's silence - Manjhi

11:54 am: Manjhi alleges widespread corruption in Bihar in awarding and implementing government projects.

11:50 am: I was asked by Sharad Yadav to step down without being told the reason - Manjhi

11:48 am: Meanwhile, Bihar Assembly has been adjourned sine die.

11:47 am: Allegations were levelled against me - Manjhi

11:47 am: Nitish ji acted like 'Bhishma Pitamah', did not utter a word when I was not allowed to do any work - Manjhi  

11:46 am: I was forced to work in a certain manner at the start of my tenure as CM. I was asked to sign on certain files - Manjhi

11:45 am: I come from a dalit background. I don't have big ambitions.

11:43 am: I still have majority, support of over 140 MLAs - Manjhi

11:42 am: Keeping all this in mind, I handed over my resignation to Governor at around 10:30 am.

11:42 am: Some of the JD(U) MLAs were planning to resort to violence in Assembly during trust vote - Manjhi

11:41 am: We had asked the Governor to hold secret ballot during trust vote but he expressed his inability to do so. If secret voting was not held, our MLAs, including me, would have faced death threat and even revocation of their Assembly membership - Manjhi

11:40 am: Some of our MLAs got threatening SMSes not to vote in my favour. We were also doubtful of Speaker's actions.

11:39 am: We could also not find the name of BJP leader Nand Kishore Yadav as leader of opposition in the sitting arrangement. The Speaker had also recognised a different party as main opposition. Further, we found names of some of our supporting legislators missing from sitting arangement - Manjhi

11:38 am: When we got the Assembly proceedings order sheet in the morning, we found long-held traditions were not being followed in it - Manjhi

11:35 am: Jitan Ram Manjhi is now addressing a press conference at his residence.

11:31 am: Senior JD(U) leader KC Tyagi says “we have been saying from day one that we have majority. Manjhi ji resigned due to lack of numbers.

“We are hopeful that the Governor will invite Nitish ji to stake claim to form government,” he adds.

11:30 am: BJP MLAs hold protest outside Bihar Assembly over Jitan Ram Manjhi's resignation.

11:25 am: RJD chief Lalu Prasad Yadav says Manjhi should have quit earlier. “He should have resigned earlier; by getting involved with the BJP he has ruined his future,” says Lalu.

“Acha hua, swagat hai, ab mil kar kaam karein, BJP mein na jayein (Whatever happened is good, it is welcome. Now, let's work together; don't join BJP),” Lalu adds.

11:00 am: BJP leader Shahnawaz Hussain says the BJP stood by the Bihar CM. “We stood by a Mahadalit, we did not ditch him. The BJP has always been on the side of the truth,” Hussain told reporters.

10:55 am: JD(U) leader Nitish Kumar says their stand has been vindicated that things should become clear before the commencement of Assembly's Budget Session.

“I will give my reaction after the situation becomes clear. We have not got any formal communication (on Manjhi's resignation). This has happened suddenly when Governor and others have arrived for the Governor's address,” Nitish tells reporters outside Assembly.

“BJP's game plan has been exposed,” he adds.

10:45 am: As per reports, Manjhi has recommended to the state Governor that the Assembly be dissolved and fresh polls conducted in the state.

10:40 am: Reports say Manjhi will address a press conference at 11:30 am.

10:35 am: In a sudden development, Bihar Chief Minister Jitan Ram Majhi has resigned ahead of trust vote in Assembly.

10:30 am: Ahead of the trust vote later today, CM Manjhi has just met state Governor KN Tripathi.

10:25 am: JD(U), RJD, Congress, CPI legislators and one Independent MLA supporting Nitish Kumar will boycott Governor's inaugural speech in the Assembly, says JD(U) chief whip Sharawan Kumar. He adds that these MLAs will enter the Assembly during the trust vote.

10:00 am: The Bihar Assembly session will start today at 11:00 am with Governor's address to the joint session. Manjhi will table the proposal to hold trust vote at 12 noon and voting is expected to be held on the same at 2:30 pm.

09:45 am: BJP has issued a whip to its Bihar MLAs asking them to vote for Manjhi during the trust vote.

09:30 am: D-day has arrived for Bihar Chief Minister Jitan Ram Manjhi. He, Friday, faces a trust vote on the floor of the Bihar Legislative Assembly to prove majority of his government.

In a good news for the embattled CM, BJP yesterday announced that it will support the 'Mahadalit' CM during the floor test.

"After a long meeting of the BJP legislators, the party has decided to support Manjhi during his confidence vote in the Assembly," said BJP leader Sushil Kumar Modi.

The BJP's offer of support came on a day when Bihar Speaker Uday Narain Choudhary notified JD-U leader Vijay Kumar Chaudhary as the leader of opposition, replacing Nand Kishore Yadav of the BJP.

The Speaker also accepted former chief minister Nitish Kumar's demand that Janata Dal (United) (JD-U) be given the status of the main opposition party.

Following the Speaker's decision, BJP MLAs created a ruckus and protested in the Assembly complex .

"How could the Speaker take away the opposition party tag from the BJP," asked senior party leader Shahnawaz Hussain.

"We protest against this move as well as the way the JD-U is treating Manjhi, who is a Mahadalit," Hussain said at a press conference in New Delhi.

He also said that the BJP has nothing to with the charges of horse-trading being made by the Nitish Kumar's camp.

Manjhi, after being expelled from the JD-U on February 9, has been declared as an unattached member in the Assembly. He was expelled for allegedly "indulging in anti-party activities". But he has refused to resign and has to prove his majority in the house today.

Manjhi yesterday said he will offer Cabinet berths to legislators, who will support him during the confidence motion. "Aaiye mera samarthan kijiye, mantri pad lijiye (come to support me and become a minister)," he told reporters, attending a function here.

Also yesterday, the Patna High Court ordered that eight rebel JD-U legislators, considered close to Manjhi, would not vote during the confidence motion in the Assembly.

A bench of Justice Iqbal Ahmad barred the JD-U MLAs from voting after hearing their petition, seeking permission to vote during the floor test.

Manjhi was picked by Nitish Kumar as his replacement when he quit last year after JD-U's rout in the Lok Sabha polls.

In the 243-member Assembly, the JD-U has 115 legislators -- most of whom are with Nitish Kumar. The party has the support of 24 Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) legislators, five Congress MLAs, two Independents and a CPI MLA.

The BJP has 88 legislators and is supported by three Independents.

(With IANS inputs)

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