[1]PATNA : With suspense prevailing over JD(U)’s move on alliance in Bihar for upcoming Lok Sabha elections, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Monday once again refused to show his cards and said ‘let the suspense remain’.
“Raj ko raj rehne do,” (let the suspense remain a suspense), Kumar told reporters in Patna quoting a Bollywood song. After a meeting of Lalu Prasad with Congress President Sonia Gandhi and Vice-President Rahul Gandhi there was speculation about an alliance between RJD, Congress and LJP for a repeat of 2004 when they had won 28 of the 40 Lok Sabha seats in the state
There were also reports that LJP chief Ramvilas Paswan was unhappy with RJD which has proposed scaling its seat down from 12 last time and his efforts to convince the Congress to dump the RJD and ally with JD(U) in Bihar
Kumar has repeatedly refused to show his cards on the question of alliance with the Congress, LJP and Left parties maintaining that JD(U) was busy with its political programme to strengthen base for the elections
On actor-politician Shatrughan Sinha who has been sulking with his party BJP for omission from a parliamentary election committee, Kumar said he was a personal friend for whom the doors were always open.
“JD(U) is a liberal party and its doors are always open for good people, but ‘Bihari babu’ has good friends in BJP also. On past occasions he was unhappy with the BJP but remained in the party,” the Chief Minister said.
Asked about Yoga guru Ramdev making a strong pitch for Narendra Modi as future Prime Minister and appealing to leaders like him, TDP chief Chandrababu Naidu and BJD President Naveen Patnaik, Kumar evaded a direct reply. ”Who? Ramdev that yoga teacher? I know about yoga taught in Munger,” he said. When told that he had praised Ramdev several times in the past, Kumar said it was out of respect for his skill in teaching yoga.
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