National President of Rashtriya Lok Morcha (RLMO) Upendra Kushwaha said on Tuesday that the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) is contesting the Bihar Assembly elections under the leadership of Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and the government will also be formed under his leadership.
Speaking to reporters in Patna, Kushwaha said, “Nitish Kumar is the face of the post of Chief Minister of NDA. All the constituent parties of the alliance have full faith in his leadership and experience. In this election, NDA will form the government with a clear majority and the swearing in will take place only under the leadership of Nitish Kumar.”
He has given this statement at a time when various speculations are being made in Bihar politics regarding the post of Chief Minister. Rejecting these speculations, RLMO chief Kushwaha said that there is no difference of opinion regarding leadership within the NDA and the entire alliance is united.
On seat sharing, Kushwaha said that all decisions in the alliance are taken by mutual consent and agreement. He said, “When many parties contest elections together, no party claims 243 seats. If someone’s existing seat is given to another party, it is decided by mutual consent. This is the core of alliance dharma.”
Referring to the experiences of Lok Sabha elections 2024, Kushwaha said that this time NDA has prepared a more precise and strong strategy at the regional level. He admitted that some areas including Karakat Lok Sabha constituency had suffered losses due to the mistakes made last time, but now those shortcomings have been rectified.
RLMO chief Kushwaha said that NDA’s strategy this time is not focused only on publicity, but on organizational strength and direct reach to the voters. He said, “On the strength of Nitish Kumar’s experience, the organizational ability of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the activism of allies including RLMO, the NDA will return to power.”
Taking aim at the Grand Alliance, Kushwaha said that the opposition is raising baseless issues to divert public attention. He said, “They made a lot of noise on the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the voter list, but today there is no discussion on it among the public. When Lalu Prasad Yadav was in power for 15 years, Dalits and MBCs were deprived of representation in local bodies. Nitish Kumar’s government changed that system and today the participation of these communities has increased.”
Kushwaha said that the public now knows the real identity of the Grand Alliance and will once again trust the leadership of Nitish Kumar for the development and stability of Bihar.
