The statement of the union minister came in the backdrop of the reports, claiming that Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar may switch sides by pulling his party JD(U) out of the 'mahagathbandhan' and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and her Punjab counterpart Bhagwant Mann's announcement that the ruling TMC and the AAP in these two states wouldn't ally with the Congress in the upcoming Lok Sabha polls.

In the Bihar Assembly of 243, the RJD has 79 MLAs; followed by the BJP's 78; the JD(U)'s 45' the Congress's 19, the CPI (M-L)'s 12, two each of the CPI(M) and CPI, the Hindustani Awam Morcha (Secular)'s four seats, and the AIMIM's one, plus one independent legislator. If Nitish crosses over, this would be the fourth time he would be switching sides. In 2000, Nitish became CM for the first time after campaigning against RJD supremo Lalu Prasad Yadav's 'Jungle Raaj'. Till now, he has been Bihar's CM on eight occasions. In 2013, Nitish broke ranks with the NDA after a 17-year alliance following the announcement of Narendra Modi as the BJP's prime ministerial candidate.

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He expressed his displeasure to the BJP over Modi's selection as the PM, and after the BJP decided not to change its decision, Kumar left the alliance. In 2017, Nitish forged a grand alliance with the RJD and Congress and returned as chief minister in 2015. He walked out of the grand alliance in 2017, accusing the RJD of corruption and choking governance in the state. In 2022, Nitish Kumar snapped ties with the BJP once again, alleging the BJP was conspiring against him and trying to influence JD-U MLAs to rebel against him.

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