Dreams of becoming PM made Nitish betray people’s mandate, claims former Dy CM

Patna (Bihar) [India], August 11 (ANI): Former Bihar Deputy Chief Minister and BJP leader Tarkishore Prasad on Thursday alleged that Nitish Kumar’s “dreams of becoming the prime minister” made him “betray the mandate of the people” and joins hands with the RJD.
Prasad, who was the number two in the BJP-JD(U) government, took on Nitish Kumar a day after the JD(U) leader was sworn in as Bihar Chief Minister again with support from RJD and Congress.
The BJP leader alleged that Kumar “went quiet” on the issue of corruption after joining the grand alliance, of which Lalu Prasad Yadav’s RJD is a part.
“Day before yesterday, he (Bihar CM Nitish Kumar) accused BJP of attempting to break the JD(U) and he went quiet on the matter of corruption as if Lalu Prasad Yadav’s family’s corruption cases are now closed and they have become clean. But the issues still exist and the action is underway,” Prasad said.
“Whenever he dreams of becoming the Prime Minister, he says things like this because his desire inspires him to betray the mandate of the people,” the BJP leader said.
On Wednesday, BJP leader Sushil Kumar Modi had claimed that Nitish Kumar wanted to become the Vice President and suggested that he was miffed with the BJP which chose Jagdeep Dhankhar for the position. Nitish Kumar dismissed the claim as “totally bogus”.
There has been speculation that Nitish Kumar is gearing up a larger role at the national level. However, the Chief Minister rejected any such speculations after being sworn in.
“Those who came to power in 2014, will they be victorious in 2024? I would like all (opposition) to be united for 2024. I am not a contender for any such post (on PM post),” he had told reporters.
Kumar was sworn in as Bihar Chief Minister again yesterday after parting ways with the BJP and joining the RJD-led Grand Alliance to form government in the state. Kumar parted ways with the BJP alleging that it was trying to break the JD(U), and joined hands with the political opponents RJD in the Mahagathbandhan on Tuesday.
The BJP alleged that by joining with the RJD, Nitish Kumar had disrespected the mandate given by the people. Meanwhile, soon after the swearing-in ceremony, Kumar said that the party made the decision to leave the BJP through internal consensus. (ANI)