RJD protests snub' to Lalu Yadav at PM meeting
Singh also rejected Nitish Kumar's claims that arrangements were made as per the protocol.
Patna: The RJD, upset over chief minister Nitish Kumar walking away with all the attention and praises for organising the Prakash Parv, on Friday said, “If Nitish Kumar thinks that event of such scale was organised without the cooperation of other parties who are in the alliance, then we have nothing to say”.
Sources said the RJD was also not happy with the way party chief Lalu Yadav and his two sons were ignored during the main event. Speaking on the issue, senior RJD leader Raghuvansh Prasad Singh said, “Lalu Yadav was not invited to sit on the stage which is a serious issue for us. People are not happy at all.”
Mr Singh also rejected Nitish Kumar’s claims that arrangements were made as per the protocol. He said, “This is not the matter of protocol at all, the issue is that the grand alliance is not visible in the state.”
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who was in Patna on Thursday to attend the concluding ceremony of 350th birth anniversary of Guru Govind Singh, had shared the dais with Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar and had complimented him for the massive arrangements made for the Prakash Parv event and also congratulated him for imposing a tough liquor prohibition act in the state.
RJD chief Lalu Yadav and his two sons were made to sit on the carpet in front of the dais along with other important dignitaries and ministers who had come to attend the main event on Thursday.
Sources said seating arrangements was made by the local Gurdwara Management Committee, which was later approved by the Prime Minister’s Office.
The RJD also criticised the BJP for its continuous efforts to break the grand secular alliance in Bihar. A senior RJD leader, who is also a minister in the Nitish Kumar Cabinet, on Friday said, “Everyone knows that no one is a permanent friend or a foe in politics, but I want to say here that it’s the BJP who has been trying to create a division in Bihar.”