Amid reports of Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and his party Janata Dal (United) joining hands with the BJP, Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge said that he has “no information on JD(U) leaving the alliance”. JD(U) is currently one of the strongest parties in the opposition’s INDIA bloc which aims to defeat Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the upcoming Lok Sabha polls.

“I don’t have information on Janata Dal (United) leaving the alliance. I have written a letter to them. Tried to speak to them. But don’t know what’s on Nitish Kumar’s mind,” Mr Kharge told reporters today.

The Congress President said he will go to Delhi tomorrow to gather more information and figure out what is happening in Bihar.

“Tomorrow I’ll go to Delhi and take full information. Let’s see what will happen. We don’t have information that Nitish will resign. He hasn’t told us about meeting Governor,” he said.

“I don’t have information so can’t tell you authentic. Let’s see what happens,” he added.

According to sources, Nitish Kumar is likely to take oath as Bihar Chief Minister again tomorrow, a record ninth time, supported by the BJP. The political churn has triggered a flurry of activities, with large-scale transfers of officers adding to the suspense. Reports of an imminent change in government are rife, casting a shadow over the current ‘Mahagathbandhan’ ruling coalition.

Congress has been struggling to bring all its allies in the India bloc on the same page in order to mount a strong challenge to the BJP in the Lok Sabha polls. Mr Kharge said that the party is trying their best to make everyone unite.

“We are trying our best to make everyone unite together. I’ve spoken to Mamata (Banerjee) and Nitish and (Sitaram) Yechury to be united. Told them we need to be united only then we can give a good fight,” he said.

“India alliance will work well and democracy should be saved, whoever wants this won’t take a hasty decision is what I feel,” Mr Kharge added.

Nitish Kumar has convened a session of the legislature party at 10 am on Sunday. Reports suggest that he could join hands and officially stake claim to the Chief Minister post for an unprecedented ninth time, backed by the BJP later tomorrow.

Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav today said his party’s alliance with the Congress is “off to a good start” with 11 “strong” Lok Sabha seats in Uttar Pradesh.

The state sends 80 members to the Lower House of Parliament and elections are due in April-May.

“Our cordial alliance with the Congress is off to a good start with 11 strong seats. This trend will move forward with the winning equation. ‘INDIA’ team and ‘PDA’ strategy will change history,” Mr Yadav said in a post in Hindi on ‘X’.

The development comes at a time amid strong indications that Bihar Chief Minister and JD(U) president Nitish Kumar may do yet another volte-face and return to the BJP-led NDA.

Mr Kumar had joined hands with RJD, founded by his former arch-rival Lalu Prasad, in August 2022 after he severed ties with the BJP.

The longest-serving Chief Minister of Bihar, thereafter, embarked upon a drive to bring together all parties across the country to take on the BJP that culminated in the formation of the opposition bloc INDIA.

In case Nitish Kumar decides to return to the NDA fold, the opposition united front will take a massive hit.
 

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

A guided-missile destroyer of the Indian Navy has responded to an SOS call by a merchant ship struck by a missile in the Gulf of Aden, the navy said in a statement today.

There are 22 Indian and a Bangladeshi crew on board.

INS Visakhapatnam took the distress call of the merchant vessel Marlin Launda after it reported a missile hit. The vessel caught fire.

The Indian Navy said INS Visakhapatnam is helping with firefighting on the cargo ship.

“Indian Navy remains steadfast and committed towards safeguarding merchant vessels and ensuring safety of life at sea,” the navy said in the statement.

The missile strike comes amid growing concerns over Houthi militants stepping up attacks on merchant vessels in the Red Sea amid the Israel-Hamas conflict. Admiral R Hari Kumar issued instructions to firmly deal with such maritime incidents.

On January 18, a merchant vessel with Indian crew members came under attack by drones in the Gulf of Aden. After receiving a distress call, India deployed INS Visakhapatnam, which intercepted the vessel and gave assistance.

Liberian-flagged MV Chem Pluto, with 21 Indian crew members, was the target of a drone attack off India’s west coast on December 23.

Besides MV Chem Pluto, another commercial oil tanker that was heading to India came under a suspected drone strike in the Southern Red Sea on the same day. The vessel had a team of 25 Indian crew.