Nitish Kumar's govt to face trust vote today

Patna, June 19: The Nitish Kumar government in Bihar is set to face a trust vote in the state legislature on Wednesday. The ruling party, JD(U), has 118 legislators in the 243-strong assembly where the magic figure is 122. Four of the assembly's six Independent legislators have reportedly confirmed their support to the JD(U).

The JD(U) terminated its alliance with the BJP on June 16 over elevation of Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi as the BJP's poll campaign committee chief ahead of the next Lok Sabha elections. The BJP has 91 legislators in the assembly.

The Congress is likely to vote in favour of Kumar's government, said sources on tuesday night, although adding that the support did not mean alliance. The Congress has been making overtures to the JD(U) since it withdrew from the NDA. Even Prime Minister Manmohan Singh termed Kumar as a 'secular' leader. He, however, said that there are no permanent friends or enemies in politics and decisions are taken on the basis of the situation.

Meanwhile, former chief minister of Bihar Lalu Prasad has confirmed that 22 legislators of his party will vote against Kumar's government. The CPI, which has one member in the assembly, said it will abstain. The BJP is likely to formally announce on Wednesday morning that it will vote against the JD(U) govrnment.

OneIndia News