Nitish Kumar will contest Bihar polls with BJP but may switch sides later: Prashant Kishor

Election strategistturnedpolitician Prashant Kishor on Wednesday claimed that JDU president Nitish Kumar will contest the upcoming assembly polls in Bihar in alliance with the BJP but may switch sides later with hopes for another term as the chief minister reported news agency PTIThe Jan Suraaj Party founder who was addressing a press conference in West Champaran district however also asserted that the 74yearold leader had grown too unpopular to enjoy a fifth consecutive term in office no matter which alliance he becomes a part of reported PTIAnybody can become the chief minister in November after the assembly elections are over except Nitish Kumar You can take it from me in writing If I am proven wrong then I will give up my own political campaign Kishor said reported PTIAbout speculations that Kumar may quit the NDA ahead of the assembly polls in view of the BJPs apparent reluctance to declare him as the chief ministerial candidate the former election strategist said He will contest in alliance with the BJP He has always done so barring the elections of 2015 when I had handled his campaignKishor also claimed that the BJP was wary of declaring Kumar as the chief ministerial candidate of the NDA because of his declining popularityI challenge Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah to declare that Nitish Kumar will be the chief minister for a full fiveyear term after the elections if the NDA comes to power If they do so the BJP will find it hard to win seats Kishor said reported PTIThe former JDU national vice president who was expelled from the party in 2020 following a spat with Kumar also claimed that the ruling party was going to do very badly in the pollsNitish Kumar may try switching sides after it becomes clear to him that the BJP was not going to back him for another term in office But the number of seats won by JDU would be so dismal that he would not get the top job no matter which formation he joins Kishor predictedThe 47yearold politician also alleged that the septuagenarian CM was physically tired and mentally retired claiming Not me but the late BJP leader Sushil Kumar Modi had stated that Nitish Kumar suffers from a serious mental illness I have been challenging him for long to spell out the names of ministers in his own cabinet without looking at a piece of paper He cannot tell the name of the district he is touring unless prompted by officials It is unfortunate that with such a state of mind he is ruling Bihar reported PTIHe also maintained that Kumar had brought disrepute to Bihar by touching the feet of Modi last year in the presence of many other chief ministers when the new Union government was being sworn inIf he has so much reverence for the PM he could have touched the latters feet in private But he is resorting to sycophancy merely to keep himself in the chair Why does he not use his clout with the BJP which is now dependent on JDUs support to survive in power at the Centre to revive the moribund sugar industry in Bihar Kishor asked reported PTIHe said the Jan Suraaj Party will enter the fray in a bid to pull Bihar out of the political rut which has been held hostage for decades by Kumar and his archrival Lalu Prasad the RJD presidentOf course the BJP and the Congress which had helped the RJD survive in power for many years share the blame for Bihars plight he allegedCriticising the states muchtouted prohibition policy Kishor said that the ban on liquor in Bihar is yet another example of the BJPs duplicityWhy does it BJP not ask Yogi Adityanath in adjoining Uttar Pradesh and chief ministers of other states ruled by it to declare the same In other states they are talking about growth and investments and in Bihar they think nothing more is needed than five kg of free ration and sharaabbandi he addedWith inputs from PTI