The Janata Dal-United (JDU) chief on Sunday took oath as the Bihar Chief Minister for the ninth time. According to Kumar, “things were not working well” for him in the ‘Mahagathbandhan’ he had joined less than 18 months ago and in the Opposition bloc INDIA.

TMC MP Sougata Roy told reporters, “Nitish Kumar is known for his political somersaults at regular intervals. It is unfortunate that he has decided to quit the opposition’s INDIA block alliance. The people will give a befitting reply to such political opportunism.”

Slamming Kumar for changing its alliance partner, state minister and senior TMC leader Firhad Hakim said the opposition bloc will defeat the BJP in the upcoming Lok Sabha polls.

Meanwhile, BJP MP Dilip Ghosh too echoed similar sentiments. “A politician usually takes oath as a chief minister once in a five-year term. But, Nitish Kumar is a politician who takes oath at least twice or thrice during a five-year term and that too from different camps each time. I think this is nothing but political opportunism and it is high time that such things must stop,” he said.

State BJP spokesperson Samik Bhattacharya, however, refused to comment on Ghosh’s statement.

“The fact is that a loveless marriage cannot go on forever. The JD(U)- RJD tie-up was a loveless marriage. This was bound to happen. By returning to the NDA, Nitish Kumar is atoning for his political sins which he had committed by dumping the NDA and joining the RJD-Congress alliance,” said Bhattacharya.