Nitish Kumar was not keen on becoming Bihar CM, says senior BJP leader Sushil Kumar Modi

The BJP on Monday reiterated that JD(U) leader Nitish Kumar was not keen on becoming the chief minister of Bihar again when the Assembly results were declared last month.

“It’s true that Nitish Ji did not want to become Bihar CM in November 2020. We convinced him that the Assembly election was fought in his name and people had voted for him reposing faith in his vision. On the request of the BJP, HAM and VIP, Nitish relented and eventually accepted the post,” said senior BJP leader and Rajya Sabha member Sushil Kumar Modi.

The NDA bagged 125 seats in the 243-member Assembly, with the BJP winning 74, JD(U) 43 and HAM and VIP emerging victorious on four seats each.

Modi’s assertion assumes significance because a day ago, Nitish had said, “I had no desire to become CM. The people of Bihar had given their mandate. Anyone could become CM....The BJP could make its own chief minister.”

Nitish’s pain and angst were palpable following the poaching of six JD(U) MLAs who joined the BJP in Arunachal Pradesh on December 26.

“We do not stab our alliance partner in the back,” JD(U) General Secretary KC Tyagi said here in the state capital, disapproving the BJP’s move to ‘finish’ the JD(U) in Arunachal Pradesh. “Instead of making JD(U) MLAs ministers, they (BJP) made them join the saffron camp, which is against the coalition dharma,” Tyagi added.

Tyagi, who addressed the media after Nitish resigned as the JD(U) president on Sunday and instead appointed his confidant RCP Singh as the party chief, also lambasted the BJP’s ‘love jihad’ laws.

“An attempt is being made to create an atmosphere of mistrust and hatred in the country in the name of ‘love jihad’. Ours is a democratic country. The Constitution gives the right to any two consenting adults to chose life partners and opt for interfaith marriages,” said the senior JD(U) leader, dropping ample hints that the Nitish regime won’t bring in any such law in the state.