The future of the Grand Alliance hung by a thread on Saturday as a change of guard appeared imminent in Bihar, with hectic parleys continuing through the day in Patna as well as the national capital, people aware of the developments said.

Legislators emerging from an informal meeting of chief minister Nitish Kumar’s Janata Dal (United) indicated that a return to the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) could happen as early as Sunday, when the proposal is set to be tabled at a crucial meeting.

People familiar with the consultations between the JD(U) and the BJP said the latter proposed the names of Renu Devi and Tarkishore Prasad for the posts of deputy chief minister, but it is likely that Prasad may be replaced by Sushil Modi who is preferred by Kumar.

“There is a chance that both BJP and JD(U) MLAs may come together at the CM’s house on Sunday, where a final announcement will be made if Nitish gives the go-ahead,” one of the people cited above said.

READ | As Nitish Kumar keeps everyone guessing, what is RJD, Congress’s game plan for Bihar?

If Kumar makes the switch, it will be his fourth such move in the past decade and the second this term.

Speaking to reporters in Delhi, JD(U) spokesperson KC Tyagi said, “The INDIA bloc is on the verge of collapse. The alliance is almost over in Punjab, West Bengal and Bihar,” and added that he could not see how the INDIA bloc parties could fight the “all-powerful” BJP. “Kumar never hankered after a position in the alliance (INDIA), but a section of the Congress leadership repeatedly insulted him,” he said.

The developments came as other constituents of the Mahagathbandhan appeared to display a united front, with the Rashtriya Janata Party remaining tight-lipped on the evolving situation, and the Congress hailing Kumar as the architect of the larger INDIA bloc.

But, HT has learned that Kumar did not take calls from either RJD chief Lalu Prasad or Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge.

The RJD has decided to adopt a “wait and watch policy” till there is more clarity on Kumar’s next move, and authorised former CM Lalu Prasad to decide on the future course of action.

Following a two-hour meeting, the party’s Rajya Sabha MP and national spokesperson Manoj Jha said, “There were discussions on the present political situation in the state and the country. The MLAs have authorised the RJD chief [Lalu Prasad] to take any decision in the context of the evolving political situation in the state.”

There is no question of the RJD withdrawing support from the six-party coalition, Jha added.

READ | ‘Would rather die than go to NDA’: Old Nitish Kumar video goes viral

“Chief minister Nitish Kumar, RJD chief Lalu Prasad and deputy CM Tejashwi Yadav have nursed this government… Why should we shake our own government? We have immense respect for CM Kumar,” he told reporters.

The RJD is the single-largest party with 79 lawmakers in the 243-member Bihar assembly. A party or a grouping needs 122 lawmakers to form the government. The JD(U) has 45 members while the NDA has 82. The RJD, Congress, and Left parties together have 114 lawmakers.

The timing of these moves is crucial. On Monday, Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra enters Bihar and the Congress had planned a show of strength with all members of the ruling alliance. But people familiar with the matter said that Kumar lost interest when it became clear that he would not be the face of the 28-party Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA).

On Saturday, Congress communications chief Jairam Ramesh said that Kharge “honestly tried” to talk to the Bihar CM but could not reach him.

Kharge, who refused to comment further till he received full information, told reporters in Kalaburagi, “I wrote a letter and tried to talk with them… What they have in mind is not clear.”

He said the Congress will make all efforts to keep the INDIA bloc united, adding, “We expect that those who have the desire to protect this country’s Constitution and democracy will definitely not take any hasty steps.”

While the party appointed former Chhattisgarh chief minister Bhupesh Baghel as the state observer, it underlined Kumar’s role in the formation of the alliance at the national level.

Ramesh pointed out that it was Kumar who chaired the first meeting on June 23 last year of the opposition parties — then 18 — in Patna. “The Bihar CM made significant contributions in the meetings in Patna, Bengaluru and Mumbai,” he said.

The party has also tasked Baghel with talking to its MLAs in the state amid fears of poaching.

The Congress’s Bihar unit chief Akhilesh Prasad Singh rubbished rumours of MLAs switching sides as “false and baseless”.

“We are all united,” Singh told reporters in Purnea, where party functionaries are preparing for Gandhi’s yatra.

CM Kumar, meanwhile, offered prayers at the Brahmeshwarnath temple and inaugurated beautification work at the temple alongside Union minister Ashwini Choubey.

“It [alliance with BJP] is a formality now. The meeting on Sunday will endorse the proposal of going with the BJP. The new government will come either on Sunday or Monday,” said a JD(U) office-bearer.

“We are with Nitish Kumar,” said a JD(U) MLA, requesting anonymity, after the informal meeting of JD(U) legislators on Saturday evening.

JD(U) MLC and spokesperson Neeraj Kumar, who was so far seen defending the RJD on the land-for-job scam, assumed a more aggressive stance.

“The RJD leadership is restless, the reason for the restlessness is clear. Those who were involved in the land-for-job scam are restless as they could not have any say in appointment and posting of over 2.5 lakh teachers,” he said.

The BJP refrained from making any categorical statements, maintaining that the meeting chaired by the party’s state in-charge Vinod Tawde earlier in the day was a routine step ahead of the Lok Sabha polls.

“Nitish Kumar has not resigned and nobody has withdrawn support. If something happens, only then will we have any information… BJP wants to know the situation of Bihar and only then take a decision,” Samrat Chaudhary, BJP state president, said.

Senior party leaders, however, indicated that there was more clarity on the formation of a new government, and a final decision was likely at another meeting on Sunday morning. “There will be two deputy CMs from the party,” said a party leader wishing not to be named.

The appointment of the two deputy CMs and the assembly speaker is likely to be finalised keeping in mind the caste composition of the state, with the Lok Sabha polls due in the summer.

Of the two names proposed by the BJP, Renu Devi is from the Noniya community — an Economically Backward Classes (EBC) group. The Speaker, the people cited earlier indicated, could be from an upper caste.

The state sends 40 representatives to the Lok Sabha. Currently, the BJP has the highest representation from Bihar with 17 MPs. The JD(U) has 16, while the Lok Janashakti Party, now split between the uncle-nephew duo of Pashupati Kumar Paras and Chirag Paswan, has six.

As the developments in Bihar continued to unravel, LJP (Ram Vilas) and HAM-S — both members of the NDA — also appeared jittery.

LJP(RV) leader Chirag Paswan met Union home minister Amit Shah and BJP president JP Nadda.

Paswan, who led the charge against Kumar ahead of the 2020 state polls, is learnt to have conveyed that the number of seats his party holds in the alliance should not be curtailed.

A person aware of the details said that Paswan has said he will continue to be part of the NDA and work under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, but if his demand of being allocated six seats in the Lok Sabha polls is not met, he would consider fielding candidates against the JD(U).

Addressing the media after the meeting, Paswan said the situation “is very positive regarding the alliance”.

“It is important to know what is happening in Bihar today… I have kept my concerns before them (Shah and Nadda) over Bihar. They have given an assurance on various issues. In the coming days, the situation will become clearer and after that, our party will take a stand. We are a part of the NDA today,” he said.

In the 2019 polls, the LJP contested six of the 40 seats in the state, and won all.

HAM-S leader Jitan Ram Manjhi, meanwhile, has said that his party will continue to support the BJP.