Ahead of the Bihar Assembly elections, former union minister and Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief Lalu Prasad Yadav has stirred up Bihar politics with his latest remarks about Chief Minister Nitish Kumar. On the occasion of New Year, Lalu Yadav extended an open invitation to Nitish Kumar to return to an alliance with his party, saying, “If Nitish decides to form an alliance with us, our doors are always open for him.”
In a conversation with a local YouTube channel from Bihar during the New Year celebrations, Lalu Prasad Yadav said, “If Nitish Kumar comes, why wouldn’t we take him along? Let’s stay together and work together.”
When asked if the RJD would form an alliance with Nitish Kumar if he returned, Lalu responded, “Yes, we will accept him. We will forgive all his mistakes; forgiveness is our duty.”
When questioned about his role as the party’s supremo and the final decision-making authority in the RJD, Lalu replied, “We take decisions, but it doesn’t suit Nitish Kumar. He keeps running away repeatedly. He leaves. If he comes back again, we will keep him.”
JD(U)’s response to Lalu Yadav’s offer
Speaking to the media on Thursday, JD(U) leader and Union Minister Lallan Singh dismissed the RJD chief’s offer, saying, “Forget what Lalu Ji says or doesn’t say. Ask him. We (JD-U and BJP) are in the NDA and firmly together.”
Later, when Bihar CM Nitish Kumar was accompanying the newly-appointed Governor, Arif Mohammed Khan, after his oath-taking ceremony in Patna, he was asked about Lalu Yadav’s offer. Nitish chose to avoid answering the question, simply folding his hands in response.
