Bihar Congress likely to hold meeting tomorrow with Nitish, Tejashwi ahead of cabinet expansion

Patna (Bihar) [India], August 13 (ANI): Ahead of the Bihar cabinet expansion that is likely to take place on August 16, the Bihar Congress unit has decided to hold a meeting on Sunday with Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and Deputy Chief Minister Tejashwi Yadav to discuss the future plan of action.
Giving details about the upcoming meeting, Bhakta C Das, Bihar Congress in-charge, said, "We talked to Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Sonia Gandhi, met RJD leaders Lalu Prasad Yadav and Tejashwi Yadav yesterday."
"We have decided on the next steps that shall be taken in view of the current political developments. We will hold a meeting with Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and Deputy Chief Minister Tejashwi Yadav in this regard tomorrow," said Das.
The Nitish Kumar-led Mahagathbandhan government will face a floor test to prove its majority in the Bihar Assembly on August 24.
Sources said that the Bihar Cabinet expansion is likely to happen on August 16.
In the first Cabinet meeting after taking oath on Wednesday, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and his deputy, Tejashwi Yadav, decided to convene the Bihar assembly session on August 24 to seek a trust vote.
The session was initially under question as Speaker Vijay Kumar Sinha refused to quit and prompted the ruling alliance to move a no-confidence motion against Sinha.
In an effective strength of 242 in the Bihar Assembly, the BJP stands at 77, the JDU has 45, Jitan Ram Manjhi's HAM(S) has 4, RJD has 79, Congress has 19, CPI(M-L) has 12, CPI has 4, while the AIMIM and Independent have one seat each.
The JDU-RJD-HAM-Congress-CPI(M-L)-CPI grand alliance has a combined strength of 163. The lone Independent MLA has also vowed support to Nitish Kumar, taking its effective strength to 164. (ANI)