Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Tuesday evening while answering the press reporters during a press conference said that there were no pre plans of him joining hands with BJP after the break up with the grand alliance.
Bihar has been going through a political turmoil lately with the breakup in the grand alliance between JD(U)–RJD–Congress and Nitish forming the new government in the state in alliance with BJP. Following a few string of events which ultimately led to Nitish Kumar resigning from the alliance, he claims that even he did not know that he would once again join hands with BJP and everything happened instantly keeping in mind the need of the hour.
Bihar Chief Minister has always been known for his clean image and he wanted to maintain the same being totally strict on the principle of bearing no tolerance against corruption within the party. The rift between RJD and JD(U) widened when a series of CBI raids were conducted at the premises of RJD Chief Lalu Prasad Yadav and his family members. He along with his wife and son, former Deputy CM of Bihar, Tejashwi Yadav were alleged with corruption charges. Following the charges on Lalu’s kin JD(U) demanded the resignation of Tejashwi, which both he and his father refused to give. After Tejashwi’s denial to resign from the post of Deputy CM, Nitish firm to follow his principle of zero tolerance against corruption quit the alliance giving a major jolt to both RJD and Bihar’s political equation.
Kumar resigned and broke the alliance on July 26 and as soon as he resigned he was offered support from BJP. During the press conference, Nitish said that “After I resigned, when an offer came to us from BJP that day, I placed it before my legislators who had gathered at my Anne Marg residence for the legislature party meeting and they decided that the offer should be accepted.” He further added that “I know none of you would believe me that I had no previous thinking of joining hands with the BJP after tendering my resignation to the Governor on July 26.”
He said BJP legislators and those of its allies immediately joined the meeting of JD(U) lawmakers where he was chosen the leader of their joint legislature party after which he staked claim to form the government.
Nitish also tactfully avoiding to mention any particular names reported that behind the scene games were being played to engineer defections in his party. He admitted that many JD(U) informed him of the heavy bribes being offered to them to leave the party. “Many JD(U) MLAs were being lured to defect from the party … my MLAs refused all allurements and told me who came with huge offers to them,” he said.
During the conference, the Chief Minister also targeted the rebel former JD(U) President Sharad Yadav saying that strict actions will be taken against anyone who goes against the party. Nitish said that Sharad would lose his Rajya Sabha seat if he attends the mega rally being organised by RJD supremo Lalu Prasad Yadav on 27 August.
Further warning Sharad Yadav, Nitish said that “If you go into the technicality of this provision….if somebody even sends a photograph of a party leader sharing platform of another party to the president of the party to which the leader belongs, it would amount to that person giving up the membership of the party on his own.”
JD(U) principal general secretary K C Tyagi had also on Saturday said that if Sharad Yadav crosses the ‘Lakshman rekha’ and attends RJD’s rally, the party would initiate action against him.