The differences within the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) came to the fore when the saffron party and CM Nitish Kumar's Janata Dal-United (JD-U) stayed away from ally Upendra Kushwaha's human chain for improving the education scenario in Bihar, while the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leaders stood hand in hand with the Union Minister here on Tuesday.
Kushwaha, the president of Rashtriya Lok Samta Party (RLSP) and the junior Union HRD Minister, had called for a human chain to improve the education sector in Bihar, which has been plagued by cheating in public exams and merit scams over the last few years. This, however, did not go down well with the BJP and JD-U, who are in power at both the Centre and in state.
Bihar Education Minister Krishna Nandan Prasad Verma said Kushwaha should first fulfill his duties as the central HRD minister and added, "Bihar does not receive adequate funds, yet we are trying our best to plug the loopholes. The human chain is nothing but politics." Kushwaha countered Verma saying Bihar had received sufficient money and Verma should tell him if anything else is required.
Some JD-U leaders said it was ironical that Kushwaha, being the Union HRD minister, was making a human chain for improvement in education instead of taking concrete steps about it.
Even as the allies were notable by their absence, state RJD President Ram Chandra Purbe and senior RJD leaders Shivanand Tiwari and Tanveer Hasan stood next to Kushwaha and held his hand to form the human chain at Miller High School grounds in Patna. Leader of the Opposition Tejashwi Prasad Yadav also tweeted about it to indicate the party's stand on the matter.
Kushwaha thanked the RJD leaders for joining the human chain — formed at one school in every Panchayat in Bihar — and said the response of the people was better than expected. He, however, added that no political meaning should be read in the participation of Purbe and Tiwari at the event.
Once considered close to Nitish, Kushwaha had quit the JD-U to form his own political party, after which the two share strained relations. Sources said it may be one of the reasons that RLSP is not feeling comfortable in the NDA after the JD-U rejoined it in July last year.
The Congress said non-participation of the BJP and JD-U was an indication that RLSP was uncomfortable in the NDA and should rethink on its alliance.
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
 "Nitish Kumar-Narendra Modi")
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
)
)
)
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}