Patna: Bihar Chief Minister and JD(U) chief Nitish Kumar delivered an unequivocal message to party vice-president and election strategist, Prashant Kishor, and diplomat-turned-politician Pavan Varma: They can leave the party if they want.
This has come in the backdrop of repeated criticism of the party leadership by these two leaders over its stand on the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA). Varma recently posted a letter to Nitish on his Twitter handle, questioning the latter’s decision to ally with the BJP beyond Bihar, in Delhi, while revealing that the Bihar chief minister had in a private conversation criticised the BJP for destroying institutions and for humiliating him.
On 22 January, Nitish had said that those who disagreed with the party on the CAA, NRC and the NPR were free to leave — an apparent reference to Kishor and Varma.
The chief minister reiterated his message Tuesday while speaking to his legislators and MPs in a meeting at Patna.
“Those who want to leave the party are free to do so. They are not entitled to give statements regarding policies of the party,” Nitish said after the meeting.
“Someone wrote a letter, I replied to it. Someone is tweeting, let him tweet. What do I’ve to do with it?” Nitish added. “One can stay in the party till he wants or go if he wants. Do you know how he joined the party? Amit Shah asked me to induct him.”
Kishor responded to the statement. “Nitishji has spoken, you should wait for my answer. I will come to Bihar to answer him,” he told ANI.
Later, he posted his reply on Twitter.
.@NitishKumar what a fall for you to lie about how and why you made me join JDU!! Poor attempt on your part to try and make my colour same as yours!
And if you are telling the truth who would believe that you still have courage not to listen to someone recommended by @AmitShah?
— Prashant Kishor (@PrashantKishor) January 28, 2020
Kishor and Varma were not present at the meeting but state JD(U) president Basistha Narayan Singh played down their absence.
“They were not invited and who did not attend the meeting is not important,” Singh said.
JD(U) leaders pointed out that both Kishor and Verma have continuously embarrassed the party and Nitish with their statements. “Kishor’s clients are all anti-BJP forces and his continuation in the party is untenable now that the party is firmly with the BJP,” said a senior JD(U) leader.
Also read: Nitish open to debating CAA in Bihar assembly, his ‘clarification’ adds to JD(U) confusion
Kumar questions current NPR model
The Bihar chief minister, however, expressed his dissent with the current model of the national population register (NPR), advocating the 2011 model of the NPR with 15 questions and rejecting the one of the NDA government, which has six additional questions.
“Nitishji remarked that if anyone asks the birth date of his mother he would not be able to answer the question,” said a JD(U) MLA who was present at the meeting.
“He said that people should not be harassed during the NPR process. He added that JD(U) Parliamentarians Lallan Singh and R.C.P. Sinha would talk to other NDA leaders on the issue.”
The state government has issued a notification that the NPR process in Bihar would take place from 15 May to 28 May. It was announced by Dy CM Sushil Kumar Modi on 5 January.
BJP circles are now puzzled by the CM’s remarks in the meeting. They privately pointed out that Nitish knew about the NPR process before Sushil Kumar Modi formally announced it.
The deputy CM justified the extension of questions on the basis that government needs to enlarge its database. “But the bottom line is that answering the questions are not mandatory and one can skip the questions. No documentary proof will be sought for the questions,” Modi said, expressing ignorance over Nitish’s remarks at the JD(U) meeting.
Also read: Prashant Kishor thanks Congress, Rahul and Priyanka for anti-CAA resolution, says no CAA in Bihar