Ever since Rashtriya Janata Dal leader and Siwan strongman Mohammad Shahabuddin came out of jail, all seems to be not well in the ruling Grand Alliance in Bihar with party chief Lalu Prasad hitting back at the Congress saying “Rahul Gandhi is not worthy of Prime Minister’s post”, while naming leaders like Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar as the “probable candidates”.
Alliance partner Janata Dal(U) welcomed Mr. Prasad’s statement, but the Congress reiterated that “only Rahul Gandhi would be their PM’s candidate”. The National Democratic Alliance said there was “no vacancy for PM’s post till 2024”.
“There are many able leaders like Mulayam Singh Yadav, Mamata Banerjee, Jayalalithaa and Nitish Kumar who have the calibre to become the Prime Minister of the country,” Mr. Prasad told a select group of journalists on Friday.
Asked about Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi, he responded quickly, “I don’t think he is worthy of PM’s post … even the Congress has not formally announced the name of Rahul Gandhi for PM’s post.”
Earlier, during the 2015 Bihar Assembly election, the Congress had put its weight behind Mr. Nitish Kumar to make him the leader of the Grand Alliance and the chief ministerial candidate.
Recently, when Shahabuddin, who was released from jail after 11 years, said that only Lalu Prasad would be his leader while Nitish Kumar could only be “the CM of circumstances, not his leader”, the Congress lost no time in rallying behind Mr. Kumar and State party chief Ashok Choudhary dared the RJD to come out of the alliance, if it did not consider Mr. Kumar the leader. The Congress response, which many believed, was prompted by the JD(U) to put pressure on the RJD chief who was trying to douse the fire that erupted over Shahabuddin’s release and his statement thereafter.
Stung by Mr. Choudhary’s statement, the RJD chief hit back at the party saying Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi was not worthy of PM’s post.
In September 2013, Mr. Gandhi tore up an ordinance brought out by the UPA-II government to grant relief to convicted MPs. Mr. Prasad was later convicted in a fodder scam case and had to lose his Lok Sabha seat from Saran, and the relation between the Congress and the RJD had come under strain.
Keeping ally in checkHowever, RJD sources told The Hindu that a lot of water had flowed in the Ganga since 2013 but “the latest statement by the State Congress president had really upset the party chief”. “It’s just a tit for tat and to keep the third and the weakest alliance partner in check,” said a senior RJD leader.
Party national vice- president Raghuvansh Prasad Singh, though reacted in Delhi that “it’s premature to announce the name of PM candidates now … after the Lok Sabha poll, all secular parties should sit together and decide”.
Meanwhile, the JD(U) leaders welcomed Mr. Prasad’s statement saying “Nitish Kumar has all the required potential to become the Prime Minister and Lalu Prasad ji knows this”, while Congress leader Sadanand Singh reiterated that “only Rahul Gandhi is their party’s PM’s candidate”.
No vacancy: NDAThe NDA leaders asserted there was no vacancy for the PM’s post till 2024.
“But the acrimony between the Congress and the RJD now has threatened the survival of the ruling grand alliance,” said senior State BJP leader Nand Kishore Yadav.
