If Nitish were to become PM numbers wont be a problem JDU leader
Patna Aug 30 PTI Reiterating that Nitish Kumar was Prime Minister material the JDU on Monday asserted it was not staking claim to the highest seat of power for the Bihar chief minister but numbers would be no problem if such a situation aroseA statement to the effect was made by the partys parliamentary board chief Upendra Kushwaha who testily brushed aside remarks by some leaders in the state BJP that one needed the support of 272 MPs to become the PM and that the JDU was unlikely to win as many seats on its ownKyun nahin ho sakta hai why not was Kushwahas curt reply when asked if Kumar were to aim for the top post would he be able to muster the requisite number in view of the limited reach of the JDU which has little presence outside BiharThe former Union minister however hastened to add we are not making a claim to the PMs post at present We are with the NDA and acknowledge the leadership of Narendra Modi But if people talk about a hypothetical future then nothing can be dismissed as impossibleKushwaha had rekindled sentiments about Kumar being PM material a few weeks ago and the chorus got louder on the previous day when Mission Nitish became the rallying cry at the JDU national council meeting hereOne of the resolutions passed on the occasion asserted that though not a claimant to the top post the leader had all the qualities for the sameWhen I first spoke about Nitish Kumar being PM material many of you scoffed at me Now you can see it has happened often that I say something and it becomes a widespread sentiment later on Kushwaha said with a mischievous smile referring to Sundays happeningsThe idea of Kumar fitting the bill first gained currency about a decade ago and following his radical move of snapping ties with the BJP in 2013 he was widely seen as a secular alternative to the juggernaut unleashed by Narendra ModiThe JDU de facto leader had however sought to make light of the utterances of Kushwaha who had parted ways seven years ago to float the RLSP but returned to the parent party a few months ago merging his outfit into itOn Sunday too the chief minister refused to reply to queries of journalists who were eager to know his take on the partys projection of him as a veritable cult figureKushwaha was also asked about the need for a coordination committee in the NDA which was stressed by JDU national general secretary K C Tyagi on the previous dayI met Tyagi ji at my residence this morning The demand is right There is a need for better coordination said Kushwaha whose reinduction into the JDU is being seen as Kumars bid to consolidate his Kurmi-Koeri base following the partys poor show in the assembly pollsIt is true that we are sharing power with the BJP for so many years Yet it does not look good when different people in the same party speak in different voices Caste census is a case in point remarked Kushwaha who had recently sought to underscore internal conflict within the saffron party on the issueSecond only to the BJP in the NDA in Parliament in terms of numerical strength the JDU has created ripples by forcefully taking up the issue of non-inclusion of OBCs in the census after the Centre disclosed that it proposed to enumerate only the SCs and the STsThe CM had recently met the PM heading a delegation comprising legislators of all parties in the state with the plea that the Centre consider their requestThe JDU national council meet among other things had also resolved to rally other states for the caste census demand which has so far been most vociferous in Bihar where the OBCs have dominated the political scene for close to three decades PTI NAC RBT RBT
Patna Aug 30 PTI Reiterating that Nitish Kumar was Prime Minister material the JDU on Monday asserted it was not staking claim to the highest seat of power for the Bihar chief minister but numbers would be no problem if such a situation aroseA statement to the effect was made by the partys parliamentary board chief Upendra Kushwaha who testily brushed aside remarks by some leaders in the state BJP that one needed the support of 272 MPs to become the PM and that the JDU was unlikely to win as many seats on its ownKyun nahin ho sakta hai why not was Kushwahas curt reply when asked if Kumar were to aim for the top post would he be able to muster the requisite number in view of the limited reach of the JDU which has little presence outside BiharThe former Union minister however hastened to add we are not making a claim to the PMs post at present We are with the NDA and acknowledge the leadership of Narendra Modi But if people talk about a hypothetical future then nothing can be dismissed as impossibleKushwaha had rekindled sentiments about Kumar being PM material a few weeks ago and the chorus got louder on the previous day when Mission Nitish became the rallying cry at the JDU national council meeting hereOne of the resolutions passed on the occasion asserted that though not a claimant to the top post the leader had all the qualities for the sameWhen I first spoke about Nitish Kumar being PM material many of you scoffed at me Now you can see it has happened often that I say something and it becomes a widespread sentiment later on Kushwaha said with a mischievous smile referring to Sundays happeningsThe idea of Kumar fitting the bill first gained currency about a decade ago and following his radical move of snapping ties with the BJP in 2013 he was widely seen as a secular alternative to the juggernaut unleashed by Narendra ModiThe JDU de facto leader had however sought to make light of the utterances of Kushwaha who had parted ways seven years ago to float the RLSP but returned to the parent party a few months ago merging his outfit into itOn Sunday too the chief minister refused to reply to queries of journalists who were eager to know his take on the partys projection of him as a veritable cult figureKushwaha was also asked about the need for a coordination committee in the NDA which was stressed by JDU national general secretary K C Tyagi on the previous dayI met Tyagi ji at my residence this morning The demand is right There is a need for better coordination said Kushwaha whose reinduction into the JDU is being seen as Kumars bid to consolidate his Kurmi-Koeri base following the partys poor show in the assembly pollsIt is true that we are sharing power with the BJP for so many years Yet it does not look good when different people in the same party speak in different voices Caste census is a case in point remarked Kushwaha who had recently sought to underscore internal conflict within the saffron party on the issueSecond only to the BJP in the NDA in Parliament in terms of numerical strength the JDU has created ripples by forcefully taking up the issue of non-inclusion of OBCs in the census after the Centre disclosed that it proposed to enumerate only the SCs and the STsThe CM had recently met the PM heading a delegation comprising legislators of all parties in the state with the plea that the Centre consider their requestThe JDU national council meet among other things had also resolved to rally other states for the caste census demand which has so far been most vociferous in Bihar where the OBCs have dominated the political scene for close to three decades PTI NAC RBT RBT
