Click to play videoPatna: A day after he was wooed openly by the Congress, key Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) ally and Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Wednesday made it clear that Narendra Modi remains unacceptable as a potential prime ministerial candidate in the future.
Nitish is today one of the most wooed politicians in India as the possibility of his party, the Janata Dal (United) doing extremely well in Bihar has made him a national figure to be counted in any post-poll scenario.
Officially, the JD (U) maintained that it was a part with the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA)
"You have heard from Nitish Kumar himself that we are apart of the NDA and we will remain with NDA," said Janata Dal-United spokesperson Shivanand Tiwari.
Nitish, too, has allowed himself some elbow room in any future negotiation on his position. Conscious of Bihar's 18-per cent strong Muslim vote, Nitish has reiterated his opposition to a Narendra Modi-like figure being projected as a potential prime minister.
"We only know Advaniji and don't know anyone beyond him. The buck stops there," said Nitish.
The BJP is optimistic about its alliance with Nitish Kumar's JD(U).
"In this election Advaniji is the prime ministerial candidate, Nitish Kumar is part of the NDA and in Bihar our performance will be excellent and make Advaniji the prime minister. That is the whole issue in this election," said BJP National Media Convener Nalin Kohli.
But the more powerful lobby within the JD(U) remains fiercely anti-Congress.
Many of them like JD(U) President Sharad Yadav have emerged from the JP movement against the Emergency, and have an aversion to the Gandhi family.
Nitish may well be seen as a potential post-poll target for the Congress.
But aligning with the Congress is fraught with risk. The most immediate impact is that it would leave him in a situation where he would lose his majority in Bihar and might also split his party.
That is a prospect that Nitish may not want to risk at this stage.
Why will Nitish Kumar stay with the NDA
- The main factor that would force him to stay with the NDA is that he would lose majority in Bihar if he splits with the BJP.
- His party has many members who are fiercely anti-Congress.
- Nitish wouldn't want to upset his present powerful position within the NDA set-up.
Why will Nitish Kumar quit NDA
- The factors in favour of going with the UPA is that several of his party MPs want to be part of the next Union Government, whether it is UPA or NDA.
- Breaking with the BJP will help him win crucial Muslim votes in Bihar, which would eventually help him in isolating his arch-rival Lalu Prasad.
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