BJP national general secretary Rajiv Pratap Rudy on Tuesday made light of the talk of a third front, saying it was not possible as the Left parties were “decimated.”
Replying to questions at a press conference here, he said the third front emerged strong in the past when the Left parties were strong. But now they were in power only in Tripura and had lost it in Kerala and West Bengal.
Referring to Sunday’s serial blasts in Patna, Mr. Rudy criticised Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar for stating there was no prior information from the Centre. Was intelligence input needed when the BJP’s prime ministerial candidate, Narendra Modi, was scheduled to address a rally, he asked, adding it was the duty of the State to ensure that the area was made sterile. But the Bihar government made no evacuation plan and not even an ambulance was stationed at the venue, Gandhi Maidan.
Mr. Rudy charged the Chief Minister with remaining lackadaisical in providing security, adding an IPS officer of the Gujarat cadre informed BJP leaders at the venue that no support was received from the Bihar government. The officer told them to be ready for “private evacuation,” if the need arose, Mr. Rudy said.
On Mr. Kumar asking Mr. Modi to be patient to become Prime Minister, Mr. Rudy said had he not displayed patience and maturity in the wake of the serial blasts, there could have been a stampede at the rally.
On Coalgate, the BJP leader said Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was a signatory to allocation of all coal blocks and demanded that he quit and cooperate with the CBI.
