Bihar CM Nitish Kumar defends alliance with BJP, recalls challenges with RJD

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Wednesday launched a fresh attack on the RJD, headed by his arch rival Lalu Prasad, claiming that people of the state earlier feared going out of their homes after dusk.

The JD(U) supremo was addressing a function here organised on the occasion of Sant Ravidas Jayanti, during which he lambasted the opposition party and hailed his current ally BJP, without mentioning either by name.

"Did those in power before us do anything? All that has been done has been done by us," said the septuagenarian, turning towards the dais where those seated included Union minister Nityanand Rai and Deputy Chief Ministers Samrat Choudhary and Vijay Kumar Sinha, all from the BJP.

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"What was the situation when we took over in 2005? People feared going out of their homes after dusk because of bad law and order. And look at how things stand today. Boys and girls can be seen on the streets till as late as 11 pm," the longest-serving chief minister of the state said.

Kumar also recalled tie-ups with the RJD, which lasted for less than two years on both occasions, claiming that "a couple of my own men" had pushed him for the alliances.

"But I soon realised that these people (RJD) had no intention of working for the people and I will not be able to function with them. So I called it off," the JD(U) president added.

Notably, Kumar's first alliance with RJD was forged in 2015 and the 'Mahagathbandhan' that came into being swept the assembly elections.

By 2017, though, Kumar grew perturbed over the name of his then deputy Tejashwi Yadav, the RJD supremo's son and heir apparent, cropping up in a money laundering case.

The JD(U) boss resigned in disgust, only to receive an offer of support from the BJP, which he had dumped a few years earlier because of differences with Narendra Modi, his then Gujarat counterpart who rose on the national scene and went on to become Prime Minister.

In 2022, Kumar suspected the BJP of trying to damage the JD(U), which had taken a beating in the assembly polls held two years earlier when another NDA partner Chirag Paswan openly revolted against him.

Accusing the BJP of trying to "break" the JD(U) with the help of RCP Singh, his former close aide who was inducted into the Union cabinet allegedly without his consent, Kumar walked over to the Mahagathbandhan.

He played a key role in bringing leaders from across the country who were opposed to the BJP, which led to the formation of INDIA bloc.

However, just a few months ahead of 2024 Lok Sabha polls, he grew disillusioned with the new formation and returned to the NDA.

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The parliamentary elections saw his stock rise in the NDA as the BJP fell short of a majority and became dependent on allies like JD(U) and Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu's TDP for survival in power.

In Bihar, where assembly polls are due later this year, the NDA has made it clear that elections will be fought under leadership of Kumar, who will run for a fifth consecutive term in office.