Law Kumar Mishra
Patna, January 24
The Chairman of the central parliamentary board of JDU, Upendra Kushwaha on Tuesday asked the Chief Minister, Nitish Kumar to disclose the deal he had reached with RJD president while snapping ties with the BJP in August last year.
Nitish reacted immediately by saying, “I do not take cognizance of his comments, None from my party will speak on the issue”.
Kushwaha who had returned here on Monday after his treatment in New Delhi AIIMS said, “RJD has told officially three was a deal between RJD and JDU while forming the government of Mahagathbandhan. I am chairman of the CPB, I have no information. Let Nitish ji disclose the Deal”.
Chief Minister while talking to media persons at the government programme to observe birth anniversary of Karpoori Thakur said, “Jo man me aawe bolte rahen. Neither i will speak nor any one from my party”.
Kushwaha claimed RJD was keeping Nitish under pressure and weakening him. There is a systematic attempt to break the Lav-Kush (Kurmi-Koeri) unity in the state. Nitish is from Kurmi caste and Kushwaha from Koeri caste. He was obviously referring to dominance of RJD in the Mahagathbandhan government.
Last week before leaving for AIIMS, Kushwaha had made his wish to become Deputy Chief Minister public, but Nitish had turned down the suggestion. Tejashwhi Prasad Yadav of RJD is the Deputy Chief Minister. In BJP-JDU alliance government, Tarkishore Prasad and Renu Devi, both of BJP were deputy chief ministers.
In the AIIMS, three BJP leaders from Bihar had met the ailing Kushwaha leading to speculation in the political circles that the former union minister would join BJP. Kushaha as head of the three members Rashtriya Lok Samta Party parliamentary party was minister of state for education since 2014.Later he joined the JDU and was nominated as a member of Bihar Vidhan Parishad and later chairman of the JDU parliamentary board.
Kushawa regretted he was neither consulted nor informed about the decisions in the party.” I here not to perform Bhajan, I am ignored”, he admitted.
Since, Rajiv Ranjan Singh alias Lallan Singh was elected national president of the party replacing Nitish Kumar. Kushwaha has been marginalised in the party and kept out of the policies and programmes of JDU.
As union minister of education he had accused Nitish Kumar with neglecting education sector and rejecting his demands for more Kendriya Vidyalayas in the state. He had organised a human chain highlighting alleged neglect of education in Bihar.
Both Kushwaha and Nitish are from Socialist background. Kushwaha was leader of opposition in Bihar assembly in 2002 when Rabri Devi was CM and he headed the Samta Party floated by Nitish Kumar.
Asked about the latest political developments in JDU, party president, Lallan Singh said, “Kushwaha had been in and out of the party three times. He is free to go anywhere. State BJP President Sanjay Jaiswal said, “Kushwaha is most welcomed in the party”.
