Countering RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav’s claim that Union minister Nityanand Rai had expressed his desire to join the Rashtriya Janata Dal, Bihar BJP chief Sanjay Jaiswal on Tuesday claimed that Tejashwi was ready to support the Bharatiya Janata Party in government formation in Bihar. Jaiswal said that the offer was a quid pro quo through which the RJD leader wanted to “protect himself and his family from going to jail”.
“Tejashwi Yadav met him (Nityanand Rai) once in his life. He said that he was ready to support BJP in government formation (in Bihar)...so as to protect himself and his family from going to jail. But BJP refused. No matter how much they try,Tejashwi and family will be jailed,” ANI quoted Jaiswal as saying.
Earlier, Tejashwi had dropped a bombshell claiming that minister of state (home) Nityanand Rai had expressed his desire to join the RJD before he became a minister in the central government. He was replying to journalists about the BJP taking offense for him comparing NDA presidential candidate Droupadi Murmu to a statue. The RJD leader said he was quoted out of context and that he had "no ill will" towards Murmu.
"Our party is supporting Yashwant Sinha because he is vocal and can be expected to keep some check on the government at the Centre. Let the BJP not speak about supporting a woman. We made Pratibha Patil the first woman president whose candidature they had opposed for no valid reason," he said.
{{/usCountry}}"Our party is supporting Yashwant Sinha because he is vocal and can be expected to keep some check on the government at the Centre. Let the BJP not speak about supporting a woman. We made Pratibha Patil the first woman president whose candidature they had opposed for no valid reason," he said.
{{/usCountry}}When his attention was drawn to the criticism by Nityanand Rai over his remarks about Murmu, the RJD leader said, "Don't talk to me about him. He had met me, before getting a ministerial berth, and expressed the desire to join my party."
Responding to Yadav’s remark, BJP's state spokesperson and national general secretary of its OBC Morcha Nikhil Anand said that Tejashwi Yadav has a problem with every Yadav who does not belong to his family.
"A dyed-in-the-wool RSS man like Nityanand Rai will prefer death to any association with RJD. His rising stature is causing troubles for Tejashwi Yadav and his family, so they are indulging in character assassination," alleged Anand.