‘Didn’t project Nitish as PM candidate’

PATNA: Maintaining that the ruling JD(U) has not taken a decision to project national president and Bihar CM Nitish Kumar as the PM candidate, party general secretary

PATNA: Maintaining that the ruling JD(U) has not taken a decision to project national president and Bihar CM Nitish Kumar as the PM candidate, party general secretary KC Tyagi on Thursday also dismissed the formation of a Third Front — an idea floated by RJD chief Lalu Prasad.

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“Anything like a Third Front is neither at discussion level in the party forum nor is it in the mind of the party’s leadership,” Tyagi said after a meeting of party office-bearers at the residence of the CM. In a lighter vein, he added, “We are trying for first front.”

Clearing the air on Kumar, Tyagi said: “The party has neither taken a decision nor passed any resolution to project him as prime ministerial candidate.”

He, however, conceded that the party had little say in preventing leaders such as Lalu Prasad, Sharad Pawar and Babulal Marandi from expressing their views on Kumar’s ability to fit the bill for the top post.

“If former deputy chief minister Sushil Kumar Modi found some prime minister material in Nitish Kumar, I cannot agree m ore. If leaders like Charan Singh, VP Singh, HD Deve Gowda, IK Gujral and Chandrashekhar hailing from the Janata Parivar can become PM, others can too. So what is surprising in it,” he asked.