JDU MP Wants Nitish Kumar To Be Convenor Of INDIA Bloc

New Delhi: Janata Dal (United) leader Ram Nath Thakur Wednesday said Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar should be made the convenor of the INDIA bloc.

The JD(U) Rajya Sabha MP said Nitish Kumar has built his image such that makes him the best fit for being the convenor of the opposition grouping.

“The image that Nitish Kumar has made for himself in Bihar, if he becomes the leader of INDIA, it will be good,” Thakur told PTI.

Asked to comment on Thakur’s remark, Shiv Sent (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut said no such demand has been made in any meeting of the coalition. “If such a demand is made in the meeting of the INDIA bloc we will discuss it. Nitish Kumar ji is a big leader, INDIA bloc has his guidance,” he said.

To a question about Uddhav Thackrey, he said, “Uddhav ji is a face which is acceptable to the country. I will not say for this post or that post, but he is staunch Hinduwadi and yet he is liberal. He takes everyone together.”

Bihar CM Nitish Kumar, along with his Jharkhand and West Bengal counterparts, and Samajwadi Party (SP) leader Akhilesh Yadav, chose to skip the Opposition alliance meeting. Later in the day, the Congress announced that a coordination meeting of parliamentary party leaders of the 28-party grouping will be held instead on Wednesday.

“A coordination meeting of parliamentary party leaders of INDIA alliance will be held at 6 pm on December 6th, 2023 at the residence of Congress President Sh. Mallikarjun Kharge. Thereafter meeting of Party Presidents/ Heads of the India Alliance will be scheduled in the third week of December at a date convenient to all,” tweeted Gurdeep Sappal, a member of the INDIA coordination committee.

Samajwadi Party (SP) president Akhilesh Yadav, who had pulled no punches on Congress over seat-sharing in Madhya Pradesh polls, also seemed to have adopted a conciliatory tone. Yadav on Tuesday asserted that the results of the recently concluded Assembly polls in states would further strengthen the INDIA bloc while also hitting out at the Congress over the outcome.