PATNA, March 31 -- Emotions ran high after chief minister Nitish Kumar resigned from Bihar Legislative Council which he had been representing since 2006. Nitish was recently elected for the Rajya Sabha. Several leaders across the ruling alliance expressed sadness over Nitish's exit from the state legislature. Legislative council chairman Awadhesh Narayan Singh said, "People in Bihar are not happy with Nitish ji's resignation. He was such a progressive chief minister who took everyone along. The pain of his resignation will always remain." "This is, truly, a deeply emotional moment; we have worked together for a very long time. Although this parting naturally evokes a sense of unease and concern, I remain fully confident that his focus will always remain squarely centred on the welfare of Bihar. Our bond is a long-standing one, it existed in the past, endures in the present, and will undoubtedly persist into the future," said Bihar assembly Speaker Prem Kumar. Bihar minister and JD(U) national general secretary Ashok Choudhary got emotional as he spoke about Nitish who resigned as a Bihar MLC. "Following in the footsteps of Nitish Kumar, working like him, respecting the strongest of your rivals is a big thing. I don't think the new generation has people with such a political mindset. Nobody can be Nitish Kumar. Na kabhi Nitish Kumar paid hua tha, na kabhi Nitish Kumar paida hoga," said Choudhary. "He has changed the infrastructure of Bihar. He has included Bihar in the list of developed states. The NDA and the JD-U will get CM's guidance from Delhi. His departure is a loss for Bihar,"said JD-U MLA Dulal Chandra Goswami. Another JD (U) MLC, Sanjay Gandhi, considered close to Kumar said, "It wasn't an emotional moment. The chief minister was feeling very comfortable. He follows the rules. We have been MLCs for 20 years." "He has brought Bihar here. His vision is not for Bihar but for the entire," said former JD-U MP Chandeshwar Chandravanshi. On the other hand, leader of the Opposition in the Bihar assembly Tejashwi Yadav alleged that Kumar was "forced" to resign. "The BJP has not just swindled him but the entire electorate of Bihar," he said. Tejashwi Yadav compared Nitish Kumar to Maharashtra deputy chief minister Eknath Shinde, who was made the CM as he joined hands with the BJP in 2022. The RJD leader said, "We had been saying from the beginning that Nitish Kumar will not continue as the CM of Bihar after the elections. This was repackaged as the Maharashtra situation, and he was allowed to be the CM for a brief period. He is now being removed by the people of the BJP. BJP has deceived Nitish Kumar and the people of Bihar. There is a vast difference between the BJP's words and actions." Nitish was the centre of Bihar politics for two decades. For years, the state's caste-based politics revolved around three principal poles - the BJP, the JD(U), and the Rashtriya Janata Dal. Presence of Kumar in any of the alliance was enough to corner the third. Kumar's presence ensured that this triangular balance remained intact. "With his shift to central politics, Bihar's three-cornered politics could start looking more bipolar," said Gyanendra Yadav, professor of Sociology at Patna College of Commerce. "With him moving out of active state politics, the contest may increasingly appear as a more direct BJP versus RJD battle," he added.. It is generally perceived that his exit could force JD(U) could enter its most fragile phase. The party built and sustained around Kumar's leadership since its formation in 2003, now faces a structural challenge. While it retains 85 MLAs in the Assembly and 12 MPs in the Lok Sabha, it lacks a leader with comparable statewide appeal to hold the organisation together. There are apprehensions that the JD (U) could become vulnerable to internal instability, including defections and splits. Experts also see that Kumar's exit from state politics may also lead to re-structuring Bihar's social and electoral arithmetic. Kumar's strength rested on a carefully built coalition that included Extremely Backward Classes (around 25% of the population), Kurmi-Koeri or Luv-Kush voters, sections of Other Backward Classes, and a large base of women voters. This combination allowed the JD(U) to remain politically decisive even when it was not the largest party....