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Firing a fresh salvo at Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Wednesday asserted that he attached no importance to barbs hurled by those whose political career began just 20 years ago. Kumar made the remark in response to queries from journalists about Shah's statement in Sitab Diyara, the ancestral village of Jayaprakash Narayan, that "disciples" of the socialist leader are now sitting in the "lap of Congress" for the sake of power. "The one whose name you people are taking, did he have any first-hand knowledge of what JP stood for? We had earned our spurs in the JP movement (of 1974). I do not want to attach any importance to those whose political career began just 20 years ago," said the JD(U) leader who had dumped the BJP two months ago. "But, yes, they have got a shot at power right now. And the media highlights them a lot. All English newspapers in Delhi have prominently carried his diatribe about me. But I could not care less," said Kumar, the ..
Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar Saturday called for Opposition unity to take on the BJP, saying parties need to bury their differences for the welfare of people looking for an "alternative". In his address to the Janata Dal (United) national executive, Kumar claimed his only goal is to work for uniting opposition parties, sources said. The party later authorised him to work for the opposition unity. The meeting also passed a resolution which alleged there is an "undeclared emergency" in the country under the BJP government which is "trying to silence" opposition voices by "misusing" probe agencies. The BJP government at the Centre is labelling the democratic right of dissent as "treason", it alleged. The resolution said the country is looking for an alternative to the BJP and asked all opposition parties to sink their differences and unite. It also accused the BJP of stoking "communal frenzy" in the country. "Minorities are being targeted. Intolerance and extremism have increas
Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Saturday expressed outrage over MLAs of his JD(U) in Manipur jumping ship to join the BJP. Talking to reporters at the party office here, where a two-day national conclave is underway, Kumar questioned the propriety and constitutionality of the alleged poaching by his former ally. He said the party's Manipur MLAs had confirmed their presence at the meeting, and had earlier backed JD(U)'s decision to quit the NDA. "When we were in NDA, they (BJP) gave our MLAs nothing. Now they have been won over," said Kumar, in what appeared to be a reference to horse trading. "Is it proper? Is it constitutional? Is it in line with established norms? They are doing so everywhere. Hence all parties must unite in 2024 for a positive mandate," said the JD(U) leader who is being pitched for a "national" role by his party. Asked about reports that he will be visiting Delhi in the next few days to meet top leaders and explore the prospects of opposition unity, Kumar
Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav said on Thursday that the political shift in Bihar is a "positive sign" and hoped a strong alternative to the BJP is formed in the 2024 Parliamentary polls. He also claimed that the BJP's allies in Uttar Pradesh are not happy with it and will also break free from the saffron party in the future. JD(U)'s Nitish Kumar recently dumped the BJP and joined hands with Lalu Prasad's Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), the Congress and other parties to form a new government in Bihar. In an interview to PTI at the party headquarter here, Yadav said his party is focusing on strengthening and restructuring its organisation and will be holding a national convention this year. The SP chief also accused the Election Commission of "dishonesty" and blamed it for his party's defeat in the assembly polls as well in the bypolls to Azamgarh and Ramgarh seats. When asked about the developments in Bihar, the former Uttar Pradesh chief minister said, "It (Bihar development)
Former Lok Janshakti Party chief Chirag Paswan on Sunday hit back at Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's JD(U), which has accused him for its own debacle in the 2020 assembly polls. Paswan came out with a flurry of tweets in response to allegation of "Chirag model at work" by JD(U) president Rajiv Ranjan Singh alias Lalan at a press conference here. "I practise politics of positivity and do not represent any model. Those who had engineered infights are now themselves faced with internal strife. They would do well not look for causes out on the streets," Paswan tweeted. The allusion was to the rebellion by his uncle Pashupati Kumar Paras, which led to a split in the LJP founded by his late father Ram Vilas Paswan, and turmoil in the JD(U) following former national president RCP Singh's resignation. He also took a veiled dig at Kumar over speculations of yet another political volte face, drawing an analogy from the Mahabharata. "Like Kansa, he is trying to kill every child of Devaki