Patna: Bihar’s deputy chief minister Tejashwi Yadav on Friday skipped the Governor’s high-tea ceremony amid reports that chief minister Nitish Kumar will dump RJD and join hands with the BJP ahead of the Lok Sabha elections. Kumar and other bigwigs of Bihar politics attended the event.

The Bharatiya Janata Party leaders today dropped major hints about Kumar’s reported discussions with the top brass of the party. Bihar BJP stalwart Sushil Kumar Modi, who had been Kumar’s deputy during the NDA government era in the state, reacted to the rumours with a cryptic message that his party’s “doors are open”. The Rashtriya Janata Dal, meanwhile, has asked Nitish Kumar to clear the air by the evening, indicating tension in the Bihar Mahagathbandhan alliance.

Here are the top updates on Nitish Kumar-BJP talk rumours:

1. When asked about Tejashwi Yadav’s absence from the governor’s event, Nitish Kumar curtly replied: “Ask those who did not come.”
2. At the high-tea event, Nitish Kumar sat next to JD(U) leader Ashok Kumar Choudhary, who had removed the name slip bearing Yadav’s name from the chair. The Leader of Opposition and BJP leader Vijay Kumar Sinha sat next to Choudhary. Though education minister Alok Kumar Mehta, who is also a national general secretary of the RJD, was among the attendees, Yadav and many other party leaders, including Speaker Awadh Bihari Chaudhary, did not turn up.
3. JD(U) state president Umesh Singh Kushwaha said his party is firmly with the INDIA bloc but it wanted the Congress to do “introspection” with regard to alliance. “All is well in Bihar’s ruling Mahagathbandhan and the media speculations are driven by some agenda. I met the CM yesterday as well as today. It is a routine affair. There is no truth in the rumours doing the rounds. We also reject the rumours that party MLAs have been asked to rush to Patna. We want the Congress, which is our alliance partner, to do some introspection with regard to its stance towards other constituents and sharing of seats. Our leader Nitish Kumar has for long been stressing on the need for early finalisation of the seat-sharing deal so that we could concentrate on Lok Sabha polls,” he claimed, per a PTI report.
4. RJD MP Manoj Jha said Kumar must clear doubts by the evening. “I request our CM (Nitish Kumar) to clear all the doubts by the evening today. He is keeping a check on everything and only he can clear all the doubts,” he said.
5. The BJP leaders, however, dropped clear hints as to the reported alliance. Sushil Kumar Modi said no door is closed in politics. “We are keeping an eye on all the developments and if needed an appropriate decision will be taken. No door is permanently closed in politics and the door can be opened if needed,” he said.
6. JDU leader Neeraj Kumar also made a cryptic comment. “Nitish Kumar is the chief minister of Bihar. (BJP leader) Sushil Kumar Modi is a key leader and it is natural for the media to take his statement seriously,” he said.
7. Union minister Giriraj Singh said said: “I’m confident that central high command will take a decision as per the interest of the nation and party (BJP)…I am neither happy nor unhappy…I know that whatever the decision will be, I am a party worker and my job is to accept the decision of the party irrespective of what is inside my mind.”
8. Bihar BJP MLA Raju Singh said: “The central leadership (of BJP) will decide about it. I personally feel that Nitish Kumar has done a good job for Bihar, and he will be welcomed if he returns (to NDA)”.
9. BJP leader and Leader of Opposition Vijay Kumar Sinha didn’t deny the alliance reports. “We are monitoring the situation (in Bihar), and the decision taken by the top leadership (of the BJP) will be in the interest of the entire country,” he said.
10. Hindustani Awam Morcha (HAM) leader Jitan Ram Manjhi took a swipe at Kumar. “I was aware from the start that the alliance (RJD-JD (U)) will fall apart like a deck of cards,” he said.