Prashant Kishor slams Nitish Kumar: 'His own people sold him'

Jan Suraaj's Prashant Kishor hit out at Nitish Kumar for his Rajya Sabha move, saying his 'own people sold him politically.' He blamed Nitish's downfall on associating with 'wrong elements' and announced his party will contest the Bankipur seat.

'His own people sold him politically'

Jan Suraaj Founder Prashant Kishor on Wednesday took potshots at former Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and asked why would a person with a mandate of 202 seats chose to go to Rajya Sabha. Talking with ANI, Kishor said that aligning "with the wrong elements inevitably leads to bad outcomes".

He said JD-U leader is to a certain extent responsible for "what has befallen him". He alleged that when Nitish Kumar showed signs of political weakness, "his own people sold him politically".

"There is a saying: if you associate with the wrong kind of people, only bad things will happen to you. To a certain extent, Nitishji himself is responsible for what has befallen him... When Nitish Kumar showed signs of political weakness, his own people sold him politically. This is clear to the entire populace of Bihar," Kishor said.

"Why would a person with a mandate of 202 seats choose to go to the Rajya Sabha?... Aligning with the wrong elements inevitably leads to bad outcomes," he added.

BJP and JD-U are part of the ruling NDA in Bihar. BJP had emerged as the largest party in the polls, winning 89 seats. Janata Dal (United), won won 85 seats. Nitish Kumar, the longest-serving Chief Minister of Bihar, took oath as Rajya Sabha member last month. BJP leader Samrat Choudhary is the new Chief Minister of the state.

Jan Suraaj to contest Bankipur seat

Kishor said his party will fight the Bankipur assembly seat, vacated by BJP chief Nitin Nabin.

"It will not be difficult for Jan Suraaj at all. Jan Suraaj has resolved that Bankipur, which has served as a BJP stronghold for the past 40 years, will be contested by Jan Suraaj with full force, and every effort will be made to ensure that they are defeated there. It is not a question of who the candidate will be," he said.

"It has been decided that the party will go door-to-door, intensifying the public outreach campaign over the coming month, seeking the opinions of the people, and doing whatever it takes to ensure the BJP is defeated there," he added.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by Asianet Newsable English staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)