MUMBAI: Shiv Sena said Tuesday that JD (U) leader Nitish Kumar should thank him if he retains the post of Prime Minister of Bihar despite his party winning fewer seats in Assembly polls than his ally BJP , as the latest trends indicate.
Referring to the dramatic turn of events last year in Maharashtra, in which Shiv Sena severed ties with the BJP and formed a government with ideological rivals NCP and Congress, Sena MP Sanjay Raut said his party had shown what it happens “when the word is not fulfilled”. by an alliance partner.
“I heard the BJP leaders say in unison (on television) that only Nitish babu will be the prime minister. Nitish babu should thank Shiv Sena for that. Failure to keep promises will not happen in Bihar because Shiv Sena has shown in Maharashtra that. that can happen if the word is not kept, “Raut said.
“Therefore, if Nitish Kumar becomes Prime Minister of Bihar, despite winning fewer seats (compared to BJP), he should thank Shiv Sena for that,” said deputy Rajya Sabha.
The Shiv Sena and the BJP together contested the 2019 Maharashtra Assembly elections, but the alliance fell apart after the results following differences over sharing the chief ministerial position on a rotating basis for two and a half years.
The Shiv Sena, which won 56 seats, had said that the two parties had reached that understanding before the elections, a claim denied by the BJP which won 105 seats.
The BJP and the opposition RJD are in a tough fight in Bihar with one of them poised to be the largest party, while the JD (U) has been relegated to third position.
However, the BJP had previously said that Kumar would be the state’s prime minister, regardless of the seats won by the two parties.
Raut, however, said Kumar’s party should introspect why he has been relegated to third place despite the latter having been CM for three terms.
The Shiv Sena leader praised RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav for exhibiting “fighting spirit” despite contesting the elections in a “hostile” situation, calling him the “man of the party” in the polls.
“The young leader fought alone against the prime minister, the prime minister and the central ministers in such a hostile situation and turned the campaign around himself. The country and Bihar have a face in politics that we can trust,” Raut stated.
When asked if he would congratulate former Maharashtra Prime Minister Devendra Fadnavis, who was in charge of the BJP’s Bihar poll, should the largest party emerge, Raut said he would “definitely” do it as “has been. our tradition to congratulate the winners. ” .
The Sena deputy said he did not believe that any party in Bihar’s elections would benefit from suicide or death in Maharashtra, an apparent reference to the death of Bollywood actor Sushant Singh Rajput in June this year.
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