Nitish Kumar Ally Quits As Minister

In a sudden move, Bihar minister for SC and ST welfare, Santosh Suman, on Tuesday resigned from the Nitish Kumar cabinet, alleging pressure to merge his party with Kumar's Janata Dal (United).

Suman is currently the national president of HAM which was founded by his father Jitan Ram Manjhi, a former chief minister.

''Our party's existence was under threat, I did this to protect it.When we were not even invited, when we were not even recognised as a party, how would we have been invited?" he was quoted as saying when asked if his party Hindustani Awam Morcha (HAM) will attend the big Opposition party meeting in Patna on June 23.

"Various creatures live in a jungle. There are lions, and small animals who are hunted...all of them escape, deer also escape. We were also escaping so far but felt today that we won't be safe for long so parted ways," he said, without explaining the analogy further.

It was not immediately known whether the resignation was accepted.

Sources in 'Mahagathbandhan', the ruling alliance in the state, however, said that even if HAM, a four MLA-strong party, pulls out of the coalition, it would not have a bearing on the survival of the government.