Former Union minister Ramchandra Prasad Singh, better known as RCP Singh, is likely to return to Bihar’s ruling Janata Dal (United) or JD(U), people aware of the matter said.
JD(U) leaders said Singh, who joined Prashant Kishor’s Jan Suraaj last year, has conveyed his willingness to rejoin the party he helped build over two decades along with chief minister Nitish Kumar. They added that Kumar will take the final call as he weighs organisational needs and political optics.
Kumar and Singh attended a Kurmi community function in Patna on Sunday, sparking speculation about Singh’s return, even as the two did not meet. Kumar left early, and Singh arrived later for the function.
A JD(U) leader, who is from the Kurmi community like Singh and Kumar, said slogans calling for the return were raised at the gathering. “...There is a feeling within the party that someone with RCP Singh’s organisational experience is needed, especially when questions are being raised about leadership succession,” he said, asking not to be named.
Singh was once Kumar’s most trusted aide. He worked with Kumar in 1998 when the latter was the railway minister. Singh served as the chief minister Kumar’s principal secretary from 2005 to 2010 before taking voluntary retirement from the Indian Administrative Service. Singh served as a Rajya Sabha member from 2010 to 2022, and Union steel minister after the JD(U) returned to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led National Democratic Alliance in 2021.
Singh’s rise created friction, particularly with Union minister Rajiv Ranjan Singh alias Lallan Singh, the then JD(U) national president. In August 2022, RCP Singh was expelled from the party for allegedly trying to split JD(U) and for his perceived proximity to the BJP. He was not renominated to the Rajya Sabha, forcing him to step down as Union minister.
RCP Singh joined Jan Suraaj ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections but failed to make a significant impact. JD(U) insiders said he believes that his political future lies only in Kumar’s party. “He has spoken to almost all senior leaders. Everyone is aware that he wants to return. The matter is now with Nitish Kumar,” said another JD(U) leader.
Patna-based political analyst Dhirendra Kumar said with Kumar’s health and long-term leadership a subject of speculation, JD(U) is debating the need for experienced hands to steady the organisation. “The parallel push to promote Nitish’s son, Nishant Kumar, has complicated the succession narrative. For RCP Singh, a return to JD(U) would not only restore his political visibility but also place him back at the centre of Bihar’s power politics,” he said.
Curated by Shiv Shakti Mishra
