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Prashant Kishor on Bihar crisis: Never seen Nitish Kumar comfortable after 2017
Prashant Kishor said he does not think Nitish Kumar's move in Bihar is aimed at the PM race. The decision is less political and more related to governance, Prashant Kishor said adding that he does not think there is any national aim behind Nitish Kumar's decision to walk away from the NDA alliance.
Political strategist and former JD(U) leader Prashant Kishor said Nitish Kumar's walking out of the NDA alliance and heading a new government with the RJD, Congress will have little impact on the national politics as this has happened several times in the past. Bihar has remained the seat of political instability for the last 10 years Nitish Kumar, who remained the CM amid this instability, is the main actor and catalyst of the situation. The new developments are also in the same direction, Prashant Kishor said adding that as a Bihari, he can only expect that Nitish Kumar stands firm on the alliance that he has now built.
"Since 2013-14, this is the 6th attempt to form govt in Bihar. Formations are changed when one's political or administrative expectations are not fulfilled," Prashant Kishor said to ANI.
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The former JD(U) leader whose relationship with Nitish Kumar saw many ups and downs said he hopes for political stability to return to Bihar. "Nitish Kumar said he s starting a new chapter. I hope he fulfils the aspirations of the people of Bihar," he said.
The Grand Alliance of 2015 and the Mahagathbandhan of 2022 are completely different, Prashant Kishor said. To him, the 2015 alliance was more political in nature, while the 2022 one is more from the perspective of the governance.
Dismissing speculations that Nitish Kumar will now emerge as the PM face of the opposition in 2024, Prashant Kishor said, "I do not think Nitish Kumar is such a person that with the ambition of becoming the PM, he will do this in Bihar -- though I am not the person to second guess Nitish Kumar's mind. To me, this is a very Bihar-specific arrangement. He was not comfortable with the BJP in this stint, during 2017-2022. It was appearing as if he was with them forcefully. Speculations over national politics at this point, I think, is premature."
Prashant Kishor said the coming together of JD(U) and RJD and the other parties under the umbrella of the Mahagathbandhan has little impact on national politics. “Tejashwi Yadav is the leader of the single largest party in Bihar, and probably he will play a major role in running this new formation. The people will be able to see how he functions in this new government,” Prashant Kishor said.
