New Delhi: With Nitish Kumar asserting that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will sweep the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the Congress on Monday mocked the former saying that the Bihar Chief Minister has once claimed that Modi would ruin the nation.
Senior Congress leader Anand Sharma said, "Now, Nitish Kumar will only sing praises of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Earlier he used to say Modi will ruin the nation and he won't ally with BJP led-Central Government in any condition. He is a man of no principles and he won't decide who will win the 2019 Lok Sabha election but the nation will."
Taking a jibe at Nitish Kumar for joining BJP amid the prevailing tension in the Bihar Grand Alliance, Congress MP Rajeev Shukla said that the former does not have the nerve to say anything against the Prime Minister now, given the current circumstances.
"What do you expect from Nitish Kumar? Will he say Modi will lose 2019 Lok Sabha elections? He is running the government with support of Modi ji. How can he speak against Modi?"
Earlier in the day, addressing his first press conference after snapping ties with long time ally Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), Nitish declared that no one is capable to face and beat Prime Minister Modi in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.
He praised Prime Minister Modi, calling him the "biggest leader" in the country and added that "there is no one who can defeat him."
Nitish also explained that he had given his long time friend Lalu Yadav ample opportunities to explain the charges of corruption against him, but to no avail.
If Lalu had explained himself over the corruption allegations, then situation could have been different in Bihar, Nitish said.
"I had asked Lalu to clarify the allegations of corruption against him and put the facts forward. It will send a positive impact on the public and which is also good for 'mahagathbandhan. I have tolerated everything, thought this happens in alliance as I didn't have a choice. I continued my work for the betterment of people," he added.
Meanwhile, Lalu has invited the Janata Dal (United) co-founder Sharad Yadav to lead the fight against the BJP and Nitish , who, according to him, joined hands with "communal and fascist forces and betrayed the people's mandate".
"Nitish has tarnished the image of Ambedkar. I urge Sharad Yadav, whom we consider the true leader, to travel to every corner of the country and come to Bihar and join our fight against the BJP and Nitish Kumar," Lalu said.
On July 26, Nitish resigned as the chief minister and ended two-year alliance with the RJD and the Congress over corruption charges against his deputy and Prasad's son Tejaswi Yadav.
