Bihar Floor Test News HIGHLIGHTS: The Nitish Kumar-led National Democratic Alliance government in Bihar won the Motion of Confidence on the floor of the Bihar Assembly in the absence of Opposition MLAs who staged a walkout during the Chief Minister’s address in the state Assembly. Despite an absent Opposition, the government sought a division of votes after the Deputy Speaker passed the motion of confidence by a voice vote. Voting was held with just the ruling MLAs present in the House and a total of 129 votes were polled in the government’s favour. The majority mark in the 243-member Assembly is 122.
Ahead of the vote on the Motion of Confidence moved by Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar to prove that his government enjoys the support of a majority of legislators in the state Assembly, at least two BJP MLAs who were reported “missing” earlier in the day resurfaced and joined the House proceedings on Monday. On the other hand, reports suggested that at least three MLAs of the RJD flipped sides and sat in the area designated for the JD(U) legislators in the state Assembly. The switch could be one of the reasons why the NDA ended up securing four more votes than expected in its final tally of 129.
Bihar Floor Test: Nitish Kumar wins trust vote in Bihar Assembly. Keep following Financial Express for all the latest updates.
The trust vote in the Bihar Assembly has led to intense speculation as the NDA government in the state received more votes than the MLAs it has in the Assembly. Officially, the NDA has 128 MLAs in Bihar. However, Nitish claimed the support of 127 ahead of the floor test of which only 125 are learnt to have turned up in the state Assembly. However, the final votes tally showed 129 votes in favour of the NDA coalition, four more than expected.
The Nitish Kumar-led government on Monday won the floor test in the Bihar Assembly with 129 votes polled in favour of the Motion of Confidence moved by the Bihar CM. In the 243-member Assembly, the NDA held 128 MLAs as per the current structure of the Assembly. The voting was conducted in the absence of Opposition leaders who walked out during Nitish's address in the Assembly.
As Opposition MLAs staged a walkout from the Bihar Assembly, the ruling NDA sought a division of votes after the confidence motion was passed by a voice vote. CM Nitish Kumar said that voting should be conducted to remove any misgivings about the strength of the government in the people's minds.
Opposition MLAs staged a walkout during CM Nitish Kumar's speech.
Bihar CM Nitish Kumar said that he is back to where he belongs and will stay here for good. Nitish was addressing the Assembly and touched upon his return to the NDA. "All developments works will continue. We are against none. I proposed to form an alliance at the central level. But when I saw nothing happening and got to know that Lalu ji is also behind it, I came back to where I belong. Now that I am here, I will stay here for good," Nitish said.
Addressing the Assembly, Nitish said that the people of Bihar would earlier fear venturing out on the streets during the regime of Lalu Prasad Yadav-led RJD. "Have you forgotten everything?" Nitish told Opposition leaders amid loud jeering by Opposition legislators.
Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar begins address in the Bihar Assembly ahead of the vote on the Motion of Confidence moved earlier today. Faced with repeated interruptions, CM Nitish snapped at Opposition MPs. "Ho kya gaya hai aap logon ko? Nahi sunna hai? Nahi sunna hai to seedha voting kara lijiye," Nitish said as Opposition MPs jeered and mocked the CM during his speech.
Bihar's Deputy Chief Minister and BJP leader Vijay Kumar Sinha said that the BJP-JD(U) combine will work towards ridding the state of the "crime and corruption" that have flourished during the regime of the RJD-JD(U) government.
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Television reports claim that as many as three MLAs of the Rashtriya Janata Dal switched sides during the discussion on the trust vote in the Bihar Assembly. The three MLAs were seen sitting on the side where JD(U) MLAs are seated in the House. Earlier in the day, the motion to remove the Speaker was passed by 125-112 votes in the House.
Two MLAs of the Bharatiya Janata Party, who failed to turn up for the floor test in the Bihar Assembly, resurfaced minutes ago and arrived in the House ahead of voting on the trust motion moved by Chief Minister Nitish Kumar. The two MLAs are Bhagirathi Devi and Rashmi Verma.
Taking a dig at the recent announcements of Bharat Ratna awardees, former Bihar Deputy CM and RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav said, "I am happy that Karpoori Thakur got (Bharat Ratna)...They (BJP) have made Bharat Ratna a deal. Deal with us and we will give you Bharat Ratna..."
Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader Tejashwi Yadav said Nitish Kumar complained that we took credit for the government's work. Slamming Kumar for the statements, Yadav asked the BJP and quipped, "Won't you take credit for the work that the government does with Nitish Kumar as the CM?"
Former Bihar Deputy CM and RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav says, "...We think of you (CM Nitish Kumar) as a member of our family. We are from the Samajwadi family...Jo aap jhanda le kar ke chale the ki Modi ko desh mein rokne hain, ab aapka Bhateeja jhanda utha kar ke Modi ko Bihar mein rokne ka kaam karega (You carried the flag to stop Modiji in the country. Now your nephew will bear the flag and stop Modi in Bihar)."
Ahead of the floor test, during the session on Monday, former Deputy CM Tejashwi Yadav trained guns at CM Nitish Kumar over his about-turn to the NDA fold and said, "We will always respect CM Nitish Kumar...When you came out of Raj Bhavan after resigning, you (Nitish Kumar) said 'Mann nhi lag raha tha' (Wasn't feeling good), hum log nachne gaane ke liye thode hai (We are not for dancing and singing)...we were there to support you..."
Tejashwi Yadav likened Nitish Kumar to 'Raja Dashrath', stating that just like he had compulsions to send Lord Ram into exile, Nitish must have also had compulsions that led him to take this decision.
RJD leader and Leader of Opposition in Bihar Assembly Tejashwi Yadav on Monday took a swipe on Nitish Kumar and congratulated him for taking oath as the Chief Minister for a record nine times, thrice in the same term.
Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Monday moved the Motion of Confidence in the state Assembly. The Motion is now being debated in the state Assembly. A vote to test the numbers will be taken up following the discussion of the Motion of Confidence.
Following a division of votes, the Bihar Assembly on Monday adopted the no-confidence motion against the Assembly Speaker. The motion to remove Awadh Bihari Choudhary, a veteran RJD leader, was moved by the ruling government. Notably, 125 votes were in favour of the motion while 112 votes were cast against it.
A division of votes has been sought by Opposition leaders after a no-confidence motion brought against Speaker Awadh Bihari Choudhary was passed by the Deputy Speaker following a voice vote.
After a no-confidence motion was moved against the Bihar Assembly Speaker Awadh Bihari Choudhary by BJP MLA Nandkishore Yadav, the motion was passed and the Speaker was removed on Monday.
The ruling NDA government is likely to bring a motion to remove the Speaker, an RJD leader, before the motion of no-confidence is taken up for voting, government sources said. The Nitish Kumar-led combine claims the support of 127 MLAs in the 243-member Assembly.
As per the current structure of the state Assembly, the ruling NDA enjoys the support of 127 MLAs, five more than the majority mark of 122. The NDA's tally includes 78 MLAs of the BJP, 45 of the JD(U), 4 from the HAM(S) and one Independent candidate. The Opposition alliance, on the other hand, includes 79 MLAs of the RJD, 19 of the Congress, 16 from Left parties, to cumulatively command the support of 114 MLAs. A whip has been issued by all parties and cross-voting or going against the party line can invite disqualification proceedings.
The Governor's address has concluded in the Bihar Assembly. Following the Governor's address, the Speaker will escort him outside. A motion to oust the Speaker, an RJD leader, on the basis of majority is likely to be taken up first. The motion to prove majority in the House will be taken up subsequently.
Amid Bihar political turmoil, JD(U) MLA Sanjeev Singh was detained by the police ahead of the floor test while he was entering Bihar on Monday morning via Jharkhand. Singh is the MLA from Parbatta in Khagaria district of Bihar.
According to media reports, the detained JD(U) MLA is likely to reach the Bihar Assembly shortly.
Leaders of the Rashtriya Janata Dal were heard raising slogans of "Tejashwi Yadav zindabad" during the Governor's address in the state Assembly. The Governor was speaking on the government's achievements, specifically in the field of teacher recruitment. The issue has been a point of contention in the state's politics with several protests witnessed over the years. The RJD claims credit for the recruitment that has happened in the past 18 months or so. The Nitish government, on the other hand, claims they were part of the CM's 'Saat Nischay' (seven promises) ahead of the Bihar elections.
The Nitish Kumar-led government will face a floor test in the state Assembly today. The Assembly proceedings began in Patna at 11 AM on Monday. Following the Speaker's address, the Governor is addressing the Assembly. The House will vote on the trust motion after the Governor's address concludes and he leaves the Assembly premises.
Ahead of the floor test of Nitish Kumar's government to prove majority, Bihar governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar addressed the state Assembly as the session began on Monday.
Suspense prevails over the fate of the Nitish Kumar government weeks after he realigned with the NDA to return to power with the BJP's support for a record ninth term as Chief Minister. However, the midnight drama that prevailed in Patna a day ahead of the floor test refuses to die with reports of some MLAs of the NDA yet to arrive at the state Assembly. The NDA requires the support of 122 MLAs to prove a majority in the 243-strong Assembly.
The newly sworn-in Bihar deputy chief ministers Samrat Choudhary and Vijay Kumar Sinha arrived at the state assembly ahead of the floor test on Monday.
Meanwhile, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which recently came back in power after Nitish Kumar's U-turn, exuded confidence that the newly formed government will smoothly sail through the trust vote.
Bihar Governor Rajendra Arlekar arrived in the state Assembly ahead of the floor test to determine the Nitish Kumar government's majority. Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav are both present in the Assembly. Media reports suggest that some MLAs from either side of the divide are yet to arrive to the Assembly for the floor test.
Earlier in the day, a motion to remove Speaker Awadh Bihari Choudhary, a veteran RJD leader, was passed in the Assembly. The division of votes showed that 125 MLAs polled in favour of the motion while 112 polled against it. The motion was passed and the Speaker stepped down from his position handing over the proceedings to the Deputy Speaker. With 45 MLAs of the JD(U), 79 MLAs of the BJP, 4 MLAs of the coalition partner Hindustani Awam Morcha-Secular (HAM-S), and the backing of one Independent member, the NDA claims the support of 128 MLAs in the 243-member Assembly. In contrast, the Mahagathbandhan's (GA) of the RJD, Congress and Left parties command the support of 115 MLAs. The majority mark in the Bihar Assembly stands at 122. Ahead of the trust vote, all political parties had issued whips for their legislators to vote in the floor test along party lines or face disqualification.