JD(U) would contest Gujarat polls alone: Sharad Yadav

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Janata Dal (United) chief Sharad Yadav on Monday said that his party would contest alone in the Gujarat assembly polls scheduled to be held at the end of 2012.

Yadav, who was asked to comment on the plans of the Janata Dal (United) to contest the Gujarat assembly polls, said his party never had an alliance with the BJP in Gujarat.

"We have an alliance in Bihar, Jharkhand, Rajasthan, Karnataka. We earlier had an alliance in Uttar Pradesh. We never had an alliance in Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat," he said.

According to reports, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar is likely to campaign in the run-up to the Gujarat Assembly elections for his party, the Janata Dal (United).

The Gujarat unit of the JD (U) plans to contest around 100 seats out of the 182 in the forthcoming assembly elections.

Many speculate it to be a direct confrontation between Kumar and Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi, who have so far been involved in a long running war of words over the future Prime Minister of the country in case the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) returns to power at the Centre in 2014.

The Janata Dal (United) chief further said the BJP would take a final call on the Prime Ministerial candidate prior to the 2014 Lok Sabha polls.

"Bal Thackeray is a senior leader and has his own viewpoints. Several others gave their opinion on the Prime Ministerial candidate prior to him. The Lok Sabha polls are quite far now and the elections are not going to take place before that," said Yadav.

"The BJP will decide the name of PM candidate after being a single largest party in the 2014 general election. Thereafter, it will hold discussions within the NDA," he added.

Shiv Sena supremo Bal Thackeray on Sunday said that senior BJP leader Sushma Swaraj will be a 'deserving and great choice' for the Prime Minister's post.

Thackeray's comments were part of an interview that appeared in his party mouthpiece Saamna.

Responding to who would be the ideal choice for the prime minister's job from the BJP, Thackeray said: "At present, there is only one person who is intelligent, brilliant - Sushma Swaraj ."

"I have said this many times...She would be a great choice for PM's post. She is a deserving, intelligent woman. She would deliver a great performance," he added.

Thackeray's comments come in the wake of his recent meeting with Swaraj as part of her party's campaign against the Centre over the coal block allocation controversy.