Political strategist Prashant Kishor on Tuesday took a dig at Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar’s calls for opposition unity against the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) by citing the example of former Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu’s attempt in the 2019 general elections.
“In 2019, former Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu played the role that Nitish Kumar is trying to play. Nitish Kumar has 42 MLAs, it is a ‘langdi sarkar’ (crippled government), while in Andhra Pradesh, Naidu was in the majority. Even he was touring India. But what was the result? He lost in Andhra Pradesh. So, Nitish Kumar should worry about Bihar,” he stated while addressing the media during the Jan Suraj Yatra.
#WATCH | On Bihar CM Nitish Kumar meeting several opposition leaders for 2024 election, Prashant Kishor talks about Former Andhra Pradesh CM N Chandrababu Naidu's attempt to unify Opposition in 2019 elections.
— ANI (@ANI) April 25, 2023
He further said "Nitish Kumar has 'langdi sarkaar' & must worry… pic.twitter.com/krLS1aASCR
“The party which has zero MPs is deciding who will be PM of the country. His party has no hold and now he is trying to unite other parties,” the former Nitish Kumar advisor and ex-national vice president of Janata Dal (United) remarked.
“Has Mamata Banerjee agreed to concede seats to Congress in West Bengal? Is she offering seats to Lalu and Nitish in West Bengal or will they offer TMC (Trinamool Congress) even one seat in Bihar? Does Nitish Kumar know more about Mamata Banerjee than me? Who knows about Nitish Kumar there (West Bengal),” he asked.
Furthermore, he attacked Tejashwi Yadav, the deputy chief minister of Bihar, mentioning that the latter, who had pledged to create 10 lakh jobs, would not have been employed if he weren’t the son of Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader Lalu Prasad Yadav.
“Tejashwi Yadav talked about providing 10 lakh jobs in the first cabinet meeting itself. Everyone knows he cannot give 10 lakh jobs. If he was not Lalu ji’s son, he would not have got a job himself. If Tejashwi Yadav was not the son of Lalu Prasad Yadav, what job would he have got in the country,” he charged. The deputy chief minister should ask for an apology, according to the political strategist, for lying about offering employment.
#WATCH | "Tejashwi Yadav talked about providing 10 lakh jobs in the first cabinet meeting itself…everyone knows he can't give 10 lakh jobs. If Tejashwi Yadav was not the son of Lalu Prasad Yadav, what job would he have got in the country?": Prashant Kishor pic.twitter.com/WMINher3YI
— ANI (@ANI) April 25, 2023
On Monday, Nitish Kumar, along with his deputy Tejashwi Yadav met his West Bengal counterpart Mamata Banerjee and Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, pitching for a united opposition. He had also met the recently disqualified Wayanad Lok Sabha MP Rahul Gandhi and Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge.
