Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar Saturday said BJP was on the path of destruction, a day after Narendra Modi was anointed as its prime ministerial candidate, and asserted that India will never accept a “divisive” figure.
As non-NDA parties took potshots at the BJP over Friday’s announcement, union minister of state for home and Congress leader R.P.N. Singh also shared Kumar’s assessment, alleging that Modi is a divisive force and that he does not believe in the country’s ethos of secularism that is harmful to the society.
“Vinash Kale vipreet buddhi (taking wrong decisions when on path of destruction),” Kumar told reporters in Patna.
Kumar, who was instrumental in his party breaking up with BJP over the issue of Modi’s possible elevation after staying in NDA for 17 years, said the saffron party was working against Opposition unity.
The country would never accept a “divisive” figure, the senior JD(U) leader said.
“This was the right time to unite Opposition parties against the UPA government on the issue like price rise and corruption... But BJP is working on some other agenda,” Kumar said.
Instead of adding new partners in the NDA, it lost a trusted friend like JD(U), Kumar added. He also claimed that JD(U)’s decision of severing ties with it on June 16 this year has been vindicated.
Without naming veteran BJP leader L.K. Advani, who has isolated in the party on the issue of Modi’s elevation, Kumar said “there is no respect for elders in BJP.”
On jubilation in BJP, the Bihar CM, whose aversion for Modi is no secret, said, “They are going ecstatic within their own house (BJP) but there is no similar jubilation among common people.”
The BJP is trying to create an environment in favour of their leader but they would never succeed, Kumar said.
Congress general secretary Digvijay Singh took potshots at BJP over projecting Modi as its prime ministerial nominee, saying the party has succumbed to threats from the RSS and wondered if the Sangh could still call itself a “cultural organisation.”
“BJP succumbs to threats of RSS and Ramdev and declare Modi as BJP’s PM candidate. Do we still call RSS as a Cultural Organisation?” Singh said on micro-blogging site Twitter.
BJP on its part hit back at Singh over his barbs at Modi and RSS, saying even Congress does not take him seriously then why should they respond to him.
“He may say whatever he wants to but why I should take his comments seriously when his own party does not,” Ravi Shankar Prasad, the party’s deputy leader in Rajya Sabha, said.