JDU unhappy with BJP’s ‘unfair’ treatment

Discontent is brewing within the JDU on the way it is being “treated” by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), ever since party president and Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar returned to the NDA fold.

The JDU is upset that there is a lack of initiative as well as intent on part of the BJP to improve coordination between the two allies.

The JDU, according to its leaders, is being ignored at the Centre by the BJP. CM Nitish Kumar, to “balance” this unfair treatment, is ignoring the BJP when it comes to decisions taken in Bihar.

“The relationship is frosty at best. There is no real coordination either at the state level or at the Centre. We have not received a single communication from the BJP on how to deal with issues of national importance when it comes to speaking in one voice. The BJP has not even once called us for consultations on any issue. Is this the way to treat an ally? Was it not the BJP’s responsibility to give us a position in the Union Cabinet?” asked a senior JDU functionary.

After the JDU formally joined the NDA in August last year, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had expanded his Cabinet. However, despite media speculating a berth for the JDU, the party never received any official communication to join the Cabinet. According to him, CM Nitish Kumar, if the situation so demands, will not hesitate snapping ties with the BJP.

“We cannot compromise on self-respect. We have showed this in the past when we broke our ties with the RJD and we are very much capable of doing it again. Lalu Yadav and his sons tried to dominate the decisions of the government, took unilateral decisions and, when it became untenable to stay with them, we ended the alliance. Neither Chief Minister Nitish Kumar nor the party is obsessed with power or the number of seats we would win if we break the alliance. We expect that the basic principles that govern any alliance should prevail. If that does not happen, no alliance can work for long,” he added.

This week, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar carried out major administrative changes in Bihar in which over three dozen IAS and IPS officers were moved from one place to another. The BJP was not taken into confidence; the demands of its leaders were also not met. The JDU feels that if the relations are not mended, then ties will become more fragile when it comes to the 2019 elections when seat sharing talks between the two parties will begin. According to them, the JDU was more than capable to win a massive chunk of seats in Bihar.

“There is no logic in media reports that Lalu Yadav has become stronger in recent times. Lalu’s core voters are Muslims and Yadavs and apart from them, no caste as a bloc is going to support him. But Nitish’s voters are spread across every caste, be it Yadav, Muslim, Kurmi, Brahmin, Rajput or Bhumihar,” another senior party functionary claimed.

Courtesy: Sunday Guardian Live