Shah gave a huge vote of confidence to incumbent chief minister Nitish Kumar and said there is no confusion that the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) is contesting the polls under his leadership.
“There is no vacancy for CM in Bihar, there is no confusion here. I’ve just said we are fighting the election under the leadership of Nitish Kumar,” Shah told Network18 Group Editor-in-Chief Rahul Joshi at News18 ‘Sabse Bada Dangal’ ahead of the assembly elections in Bihar.
Asked who will be the chief minister if the NDA returns to power, Shah took a swipe at the “dynastic” politics within the Mahagathbandhan. He said RJD chief Lalu Prasad Yadav wants his son, Tejashwi Yadav, to become Bihar’s CM; and Congress leader Sonia Gandhi wants her son, Rahul Gandhi, to become Prime Minister.
“Lalu ji wants his son should become CM, and according to Sonia ji, her son should become PM. I want to tell them both that there is no space available in either Bihar or Delhi; in Delhi, there’s Modi ji, and in Bihar, it’s Nitish Kumar ji,” he said, reasserting that he has clearly stated that the election is being fought under Nitish Kumar.
He said Bihar has witnessed tremendous progress in the last 11 years under the “double-engine” government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Nitish Kumar.
“In 11 years, 85.2 million (8 crore 52 lakh) people have received 5 kg of free food grains, 6.60 crore accounts have been opened under the Jan Dhan Yojana. Nitish Kumar ne poorna roop se 11 saal may Bihar ko ‘jungle raj’ se mukt kiya hai (Nitish Kumar has freed Bihar from ‘jungle raj’ in the last 11 years of his government),” he added.
The Union minister’s remarks come a day after opposition leader Tejashwi Yadav attacked the NDA, saying Nitish Kumar is a “puppet” in the ruling alliance and the BJP will not make him the CM if it returns to power.
The BJP gave a strong response to Tejashwi’s comments, saying he should “first take care of his own house”.
“Nitish Kumar was, is, and will remain the chief minister. Tejashwi should first take care of his own house,” BJP MP Ravi Shankar Prasad told reporters while reacting to the launch of the opposition’s election manifesto, ‘Bihar Ka Tejashwi Pran’, on Tuesday (October 28).
Bihar deputy CM Samrat Choudhary has also endorsed Nitish Kumar, saying it is up to the people of Bihar whether it wants a “criminal family” or a “clean” leader like the JD(U) veteran at its helm. This indicates an overall consensus, if nothing else, within the NDA that Nitish Kumar will continue to lead the state and the alliance if they win the polls.
The Bihar assembly elections will be held in two phases on November 6 and 11. The results will be declared on November 14.
