RJD talks for Nitish Kumar as PM in 2024 amid signs of discord in BJP-JDU alliance
The Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) has made an offer to Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar. Senior party leader Uday Narayan Choudhary has said that if Nitish Kumar vacates the Chief Minister's chair to accommodate Lalu's son Tejashwi Yadav, the opposition "will try to project the JD(U) leader as the prime ministerial candidate" for the 2024 general elections.
Choudhary's reaction came amid signs of a strain in the BJP-JD(U) ties. The JD(U) has accused the BJP of not following the coalition dharma after six of the party MLAs in Arunachal Pradesh defected to the saffron party and also rejected the demand of BJP leaders to enact an anti-love jihad law.
Choudhary said that the RJD leaders are keeping a close eye on the developments, according to a report in The Indian Express. He said that it is clear that the BJP is asserting its authority over Nitish Kumar.
READ MORE: Embarrassment for Nitish Kumar as six JDU MLAs in Arunachal join BJP
The BJP and JD(U) contested Assembly elections in an alliance under the leadership of Nitish Kumar. The saffron party won more seats than the JD(U) in the Assembly elections held in October-November. The BJP made Nitish as the CM.
Notably, Nitish recently said that he had "no desire to become the chief minister". "I had said that the public had given its mandate and anyone can be made the chief minister, BJP could make its own chief minister," news agency ANI quoted him as saying. Reacting to the developments in Arunachal Pradesh, Nitish only said "they have gone their own way".
When his former deputy Sushil Kumar Modi, now a Rajya Sabha member from Bihar, was asked about the CM's comments, he replied that Nitish Kumar was the natural choice for the top job in the state and the alliance between the BJP and JD(U) is unbreakable as he downplayed the reports of discord.
"We have a strong alliance in Bihar and it is unbreakable. Arunachal Pradesh episode will have no impact in Bihar,” Sushil said.
READ MORE: 'After Arunachal, JDU will break in Bihar as well', Tej Pratap's dig at Nitish Kumar
