Bihar CM Nitish Kumar is a big turncoat': Lalu Yadav

Patna: RJD chief Lalu Yadav on Tuesday vented his ire against Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar, saying that the latter has betrayed the mandate by breaking the grand secular alliance in Bihar.

“The match between BJP and Nitish Kumar was already fixed. Nitish Kumar used my son to break the alliance and form a government with BJP,” RJD chief Lalu Yadav said during a press conference in Patna on Tuesday.

Mr Yadav also used the term “Paltu Ram” ( turncoat) for Nitish Kumar, who had accused him of using secularism to cover his black money.

“I know him very well he is a big Paltu Ram (turncoat) of Indian politics. He never keeps his promises and always changes sides,” Mr Yadav said.

Mr Kumar had earlier said that he had no option but to walk out of the grand secular alliance as remaining in it would have meant compromising with corruption. Taking a swipe at Mr Kumar for praising Prime Minister Narendra Modi and saying that “no leader in the country has the ability to compete with him”, Mr Yadav said the Opposition’s unity would be further expanded and the parties would take on the BJP in the 2019 General Elections.

He said that Mr Kumar used to speak against the Prime Minister when he was with the grand secular alliance but now “he has surrendered before him and praising him”.

“He may have surrendered but we will stop Narendra Modi and his party BJP,” he said.

Mr Yadav, while speaking to reporters in Patna, said his fight against “communal and fascist forces” will continue and he has urged senior JD (U) leader Sharad Yadav to strengthen Opposition parties in their fight against the BJP.

He said that “Nitish Kumar cannot forget the efforts of Sharad Yadav, who also played a vital role in making him a big leader”.

Mr Yadav also slammed chief minister Nitish Kumar for his earlier remarks in which he had said that it was he who had made Lalu Yadav a leader.

“Nitish Kumar today says that he made me leader I am senior to him, he forgot that he used to take my blessings before even attending political debates earlier. He should be ashamed for saying such things,” he said.

Mr Yadav also said that Mr Kumar’s party JD(U) was included into the grand secular alliance after Mulayam Singh Yadav intervened into the matter. “I know him very well, and I had refused initially but Mulayam Singh Yadav asked me to take him in the alliance”.