JD(U) hopeful of 'respectable' representation at Centre, may demand up to 3 cabinet berths
With 12 MPs, the JD(U) is the second biggest BJP ally after the Telugu Desam Party's 16 in the NDA
Prime Minister Narendra Modi with key allies TDP chief N Chandrababu Naidu, JD(U) chief Nitish Kumar and Janasena chief Pawan Kalyan during National Democratic Alliance (NDA) meeting at PM's residence, in New Delhi (PTI)
PATNA: The JD(U) is likely to demand "up to three" cabinet berths in the BJP-led NDA government at the Centre, a senior leader of the Nitish Kumar-led party said on Thursday.
With 12 MPs, the JD(U) is the second biggest BJP ally after the Telugu Desam Party's 16 in the NDA. The backing of allies like the JD(U) and TDP is crucial for the BJP to form the government at the Centre, as the saffron party could not reach the majority mark on its own in the Lok Sabha elections.
"We are now eyeing up to three cabinet berths...," the JD(U) leader said.
Another top party leader said he was hopeful of a "respectable" representation in the Union Council of Ministers.
"Prime Minister Narendra Modi and our party chief Nitish Kumar ji will decide the matter of cabinet berths. But, it should be respectable," Shrawan Kumar, JD(U) leader and Bihar Rural Development Minister, told PTI.
He also said the matter of representation in the Union cabinet should be decided keeping the 2025 Bihar assembly polls in mind.
In 2019, a "token representation" of just one berth had been turned down by Nitish Kumar.
According to the JD(U) sources, the party was keen on portfolios such as railways, rural development, agriculture, water resources and heavy industries.
Among the frontrunners for ministerial berths in the party include its Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Jha, Rajiv Ranjan Singh ‘Lalan’, Kaushalendra Kumar, Ramprit Mandal and Lovely Anand, they said.
Earlier in the day, party leader K C Tyagi told reporters in New Delhi that the party has demanded a review of the Agnipath scheme, and will "pursue" the caste census issue.
He also said his party's support for the BJP was "unconditional".
"There is no pre-condition, there is unconditional support. But it is in our mind and heart that Bihar should be given special status. After bifurcation, the situation Bihar has faced can not be corrected without granting it special status," Tyagi said.
The BJP bagged 240 seats in the 543-member Lok Sabha, 32 short of an absolute majority, while the NDA secured 293 seats.