Nitish Kumar not keen on alliance, asks party to gear up for polls

PATNA: Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Wednesday asked his party's elected representatives and heads of various cells from different districts to go to the poll battle in their respective areas. He will keep meeting the party MLAs and MPs from different districts till June 17.

Sources said Nitish's pep talk centred around the proposed alliance with Lalu Prasad's RJD, former CM Jitan Ram Manjhi and the development works done in Bihar under his leadership. "Gathbandhan ho toh bhi thik, nah ho toh bhi thik (if alliance with RJD happens, alright; if not, no problem)," he said, exhorting them to tell the electorate about the works done in the state during the nine years of his chief ministership.

"I have not done anything wrong which should make you feel ashamed. Even he is speaking against me whom I elevated to the top. Now, he is talking about making a Nitish-free Bihar," Nitish said, in an oblique reference to Manjhi.

READ ALSO: No compromise on Nitish as CM choice: JD(U)

The sources said Nitish in his speech did not appear keen on alliance as he considered merger a better option. The JD (U) leadership believes RJD would create problems in alliance as Lalu was staking claim even on the existing JD (U) seats.

"We have been told not to wait for alliance to happen but go to the people and tell them about the works done under Nitishji," Govindganj MLA Meena Dwivedi told TOI after the meeting.

Madhuban MLA Shivji Rai nodded. "Nitishji sounded the poll bugle. He told us to sink differences, if any, and coordinate with different wings of the party. He also said talks of alliance with Congress and Left parties are on," Rai said, adding the Manjhi experiment flopped but crying over spilt milk was of no use.