New Delhi, June 21 (IANS) In view of the rift between Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) leader Ram Vilas Paswan has adopted a wait-and-watch approach on the developments in the poll-bound state.
‘We have to see whether Nitish Kumar is enacting an electoral drama. Otherwise, why this sudden reversal of stand by Nitish Kumar? He had no problem with the BJP, the RSS (Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh) and Narendra Modi for the past four and a half years,’ Paswan told IANS here.
The LJP leader’s comments came as the rift between the ruling Janata Dal-United (JD-U) and the BJP threatens the 14-year-old alliance in Bihar.
The rift started after Nitish Kumar returned the Rs.5 crore that BJP leader and Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi had contributed for flood relief in Bihar in 2008.
Paswan, whose LJP has an electoral alliance with Lalu Prasad’s Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), said ‘the last minute about-turn will not help Nitish Kumar in the polls’ slated in October.
Nitish Kumar had been losing support among the upper castes and all other sections. He would have thought that even by taking a belated stand against Narendra Modi, he would manage to save his little support among the minorities, Paswan said.
The LJP leader said it was Nitish Kumar who had provided ‘all facilities to conduct the BJP meet, which saw the participation of Narendra Modi and other minority-baitors’.
‘A national-level RSS camp was held in Bihar after a gap of 20 years during the Nitish Kumar regime. If Nitish Kumar returned the financial assistance of the Modi government, why had he accepted it in the first place. And why was the assistance not spent so far. Nitish Kumar’s moves are politically calculative and not ideological,’ Paswan said.
‘Nitish Kumar, who resists Modi now, had not registered any protest when the Godhra incident and the Gujarat violence occurred in 2002. While he continued comfortably in the NDA (National Democratic Alliance) government, I resigned in protest against the Gujarat violence in which hundreds of people belonging to the minority community were killed,’ he said.
‘Even while watching the BJP-JD(U) drama, our alliance will go ahead with the preparations for the assembly elections,’ Paswan said, adding that seat allocation in his alliance is under progress.
The LJP will prefer to have the Communist Party of India (CPI) in the alliance. However, the CPI is against Lalu Prasad, he admitted.
According to him, the elections will see a direct fight between the JD(U)-BJP and the RJD-LJP alliance in the state.
About the chances of the Congress emerging as a third force, Paswan said: ‘We do not see it (happening). Despite, Rahul Gandhi making so many trips to Bihar recently.’
