Bihar political twist: As political situation continues to unfold in the state with suspense over Nitish Kumar's next move, Janata Dal (United) leader KC Tyagi has accused the Congress party of repeadtedly 'insulting' the Bihar chief minister and said that the Mahagathbandhan (grand alliance) is on the verge of collapse.
"The I.N.D.I.A bloc is on the verge of collapse. The alliance of I.N.D.I.A bloc parties is almost over in Punjab, West Bengal and Bihar," he told reporters.
The goal and intentions with which Kumar, the JD(U) president, succeeded in bringing non-Congress parties with the Congress have come unstuck, Tyagi said, asserting that their leader was "misunderstood".
In a meeting with Home Minister Amit Shah and BJP president JP Nadda, Lok Janshakti Party (Ramvilas) leader Chirag Paswan raised some concerns and is learnt to have sought assurance that his party will not have to compromise on its share of seats in the Lok Sabha polls after Kumar's entry in the National Democratic Alliance.
Paswan later told reporters he has received assurances on several of his issues but added that he will finalise his party's stand on developments in Bihar after the situation becomes clear. It is not yet clear if and when Kumar is joining hands with the BJP, he said.
As the leaders of all three main parties, the BJP, RJD and the JD(U) held meetings in Patna amid the possibility of Kumar resigning on Sunday and then announcing a tie-up with the former ally, his close aide Tyagi clearly indicated that his party is all set to dump the I.N.D.I.A bloc.
"The INDIA bloc is on the verge of collapse. The alliance of INDIA bloc parties is almost over in Punjab, West Bengal and Bihar," he told reporters.
The goal and intentions with which Kumar, the JD(U) president, succeeded in bringing non-Congress parties with the Congress have come unstuck, Tyagi said, asserting that their leader was "misunderstood".
Kumar never hankered after a position in the alliance but a section of the Congress leadership repeatedly insulted him, he said. Tyagi said he could not see as to how the I.N.D.I.A bloc parties could fight the "all-powerful" BJP.
The BJP's top brass' decision to reach out to existing state allies, especially Paswan, underscores its effort to rule out a repeat of the 2020 assembly polls when the LJP leader walked out of the alliance to contest mostly against the JD(U), leading to a steep fall in the rally of Kumar's party.
The chief minister blamed the BJP for it and snapped their ties in 2022 to join hands with the RJD-Congress-Left alliance.
With inputs from PTI
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