INDIA bloc offered PM’s post to Nitish, claims JD(U)
New Delhi, June 8
Ahead of the swearing-in ceremony of Prime Minister-designate Narendra Modi on June 9, the key ally of the National Democratic Alliance — Janata Dal (United) — has claimed that the opposition Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) leaders offered the post of the Prime Minister to Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar.
Speaking to the media, JD(U) general secretary KC Tyagi on Saturday said, “Proposals to the extent of the offer of Prime Ministership to JD(U) president Nitish Kumar have also come from the INDIA bloc leaders. These are the same people who had problems making Nitish Kumar the convener of their block. Some INDIA leaders even wanted to speak to Nitish Kumar in this regard, but the party decided that it is not going to look back.”
Tyagi said the JD(U) will stay in alliance with the BJP-led NDA, as clarified by Nitish Kumar on Friday while endorsing the candidature of Narendra Modi as the Prime Minister and NDA leader in the Parliament.
He said Nitish was the architect of the INDIA bloc and was humiliated by the camp.
He said all regional parties wanted Nitish Kumar to be convenor of INDIA bloc but under a conspiracy, TMC’s Mamata Banerjee and AAP’s Arvind Kejriwal proposed Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge’s name for the PM’s post when it had been decided that there will be no PM face. “Even on Nitish’s convenorship, a senior Congress leader raised question marks. This was not acceptable to our rank and file. So we decided to sever ties with the INDIA bloc and returned to the NDA. Our decision has proved to be right. After the Lok Sabha poll results, senior leaders of INDIA bloc, including of the Congress, started contacting Nitish and JD(U) and offered to make him the PM. We in the JD(U) are happy to have rejected the offer and endorsed Modi as the PM. The bankruptcy of INDIA bloc leaders is evident from the fact that they suddenly offered PM-ship to the person who they rejected for the convener’s post. Should any INDIA bloc leader deny what I am saying, we have the evidence of the phone conversations,” Tyagi said.
