Ahead of the third meeting of the Indian National Developmental, Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) in Mumbai, Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) supremo Lalu Prasad said on Tuesday that anybody could become the alliance’s convener when asked about appointing Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar to the post.
Mr. Prasad was in Gopalganj where he visited his ancestral village Phulwaria along with his wife Rabri Devi after a gap of almost seven years.
Asked about Mr. Kumar’s name doing the rounds as INDIA convener, Mr. Prasad said while speaking to the media at the circuit house: “Anybody can be the convener, and the decision would be made unanimously. There would be a State-wise convener for the smooth functioning. It means that if “X” is made the convener then he will be responsible for four to five States. Then that person would sort out all matters keeping all the political parties united.”
The former Chief Minister of Bihar who is currently out on bail in the fodder scam cases attacked Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying: “INDIA will save the democracy which is currently in danger as Prime Minister Narendra Modi is taking all the effort to eliminate the constitution of Bhim Rao Ambedkar. The way the PM speaks it seems he is unconscious. I have never seen such a PM who claims that he will unfurl the Tricolour next year as well at the Red Fort. Such an act shows his uneasiness and impatience. There is no question of Narendra Modi becoming Prime Minister again. He has no votes,” Mr. Prasad said.
The RJD chief also denied having any deal with Mr. Kumar to make his son Tejashwi Yadav as the Chief Minister of Bihar. He, however, pointed out that the workers wanted to see his younger son at the top post of the State but as of now the priority was to defeat BJP-led NDA in the 2024 Lok Sabha election.
“There is no problem between Nitishji and Tejashwi. Our only goal is to remove Narendra Modi and save the country. I know the party workers want Tejashwi to be the Chief Minister of Bihar but he is already serving as a Deputy Chief Minister. The main issue is not Tejashwi becoming CM, It is about removing BJP from the Centre and defeating the saffron party in the 2024 election,” Mr. Prasad said.
Two of INDIA’s meetings have already taken place in Patna and Bengaluru and the third is scheduled in Mumbai on August 31 and September 1 to chalk out the future strategy. Mr. Kumar has played an important role in uniting the Opposition parties and bringing them on a common platform and there is speculation that he would be appointed as INDIA convener.
Mr. Prasad said that everything had been finalised and the Mumbai meeting would be probably the final meeting of the alliance as little time was left for the Lok Sabha election.
“We formed the Opposition block and meetings have taken place in Patna and Bengaluru and now the third meeting is in Mumbai. In this meeting we will probably make final decisions because there is hardly any time left for the Lok Sabha polls. During the meeting the candidates and constituencies would also be discussed as per the winning ability. We will keep in mind who is strong where and accordingly, a decision would be taken to ensure victory for INDIA,” Mr. Prasad asserted.
The Supreme Court will take up Central Bureau of Investigation’s petition on August 25 challenging the bail granted to Mr. Prasad by the Jharkhand High Court in the fodder scam case. Mr. Prasad has been convicted in five cases related to the scam with regard to illegal withdrawal of money from Dumka, Deoghar, Chaibasa and Doranda treasuries during undivided Bihar.
