The Congress’ efforts to forge a grand opposition alliance suffered a major setback as Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar tendered his resignation accusing the grand old party of failing to rein in its ally, the RJD.
The Congress was guarded in its response to the developments in Bihar, saying it was “disappointed” and hoped that the “differences of opinion” could be sorted out “amicably”.
“We are deeply disappointed by the news of the resignation of Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar,” Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Singh Surjewala said.
Privately, Congress leaders admitted that they were caught unawares by the decision. A section viewed the move as a breach of the faith Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi had in him while forging the grand alliance.
A senior leader pointed out that Nitish had made no mention of his plans to quit during a meeting he had with Rahul on Saturday.
Nitish, who enjoys direct access to Rahul, on Wednesday chose to convey his decision to quit through a conduit – AICC general secretary C P Joshi – when he had almost reached the gates of the Raj Bhavan in Patna. Senior Congress leaders are scheduled to meet on Thursday to take stock of the situation in Bihar.
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