The JD(U) chief was miffed at the Congress for outright ruling out NDA nominee Ram Nath Kovind's name for the post.
All does not seem to be well between Bihar's 'Bade Bhai and Chhote Bhai' aka RJD President Lalu Prasad Yadav and Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, with the latter making it clear that he will not be a part of the "impracticable strategy of the united Opposition to nominate Bihar ki Beti for the country's top post, only for her to lose the polls".
Kumar, also the JD(U) President, was talking to reporters after making a brief appearance at Yadav's iftar party on Friday evening, and asked the 17-party Opposition to rethink former Lok Sabha speaker Meira Kumar's candidature for the July 17 presidential polls.
"A united Opposition has started with a strategy of defeat. Do they think that Bihar's daughter is only fit for losing?" Kumar said in a bid to silence his critics, who were cornering him for not supporting a daughter of the state. He added, "If they really want to honour her, they should make a strategy to win the 2019 general election so that she can be made the President in 2022." He even asked, "Why was she not chosen for the post by them on two earlier occasions (2012 and 2007)?"
The JD(U) chief was miffed at the Congress for outright ruling out NDA nominee Ram Nath Kovind's name for the post. "When Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad, during his Patna visit on Tuesday, said their party will not consider Kovind's name, even before the June 22 Delhi meeting, we did not find it suitable to participate in the meeting," Kumar said, adding that the JD(U) would have argued its case there if everyone had been ready for an open decision.
Friday's iftar at Yadav's residence, meanwhile, saw both leaders appearing distant from each other. Even though both of them sat side by side, they hardly exchanged a few sentences. While Yadav chatted with state Congress President Ashok Choudhary on his left, Kumar kept talking to Vidhan Sabha Speaker Vijay Choudhary, seated to his right. The two did share an embrace for a few seconds, but it appeared half-hearted and forced to most who were present on the occasion.
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