Modi and Nitish to come together for Bihar rally after 9 years
Nitish Kumar said that discussions were going on among the two alliance partners to hold a rally, however, the dates haven't been finalised yet.
It will be after a gap of nine years that Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar will be sharing the stage for an election rally slated for March 3 at the historic Gandhi Maidan in Patna.
The last time the two leaders shared stage for an election rally was in 2010 in Punjab.
It may be mentioned that Nitish Kumar has been part of the NDA since 1998 except between June 2013 and July 2017. Interestingly, after Nitish Kumar joined hands with BJP in Bihar in 2017, this will be Prime Minister Modi and Nitish Kumar's first public meeting together in the state.
Speaking to the press on Monday, Kumar said that discussions were going on among the two alliance partners to hold a rally, however, the dates haven't been finalised yet.
"We are discussing which alliance partners will hold a rally, however, no date has been fixed till now. Prime Minister Modi is expected to attend this rally whenever it happens," said Nitish Kumar.
Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) chief and Union minister Ram Vilas Paswan will also participate in this rally.
The NDA rally is being seen as a counter to Congress president Rahul Gandhi's 'Jan Akanksha Rally' at the same venue scheduled on February 3. This will be Rahul Gandhi's first visit to Bihar after assuming charge as Congress president.
"It is a Congress rally and partners in the mahagathbandhan will also be invited to attend it. We are working overtime to ensure that the rally becomes a huge success," said Tariq Anwar, senior Congress leader.
RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav, Hindustani Awam Morcha (HAM) leader Jitan Ram Manjhi and Rashtriya Lok Samta Party (RLSP) supremo Upendra Kushwaha are expected to participate in the Congress rally.
Sources say there are differences between RJD and Congress over seat-sharing agreement for the Lok Sabha elections with the former offering eight seats to the Congress, which is demanding 12, the number of seats it contested in 2014.
Tejashwi Yadav has dropped several hints that Congress will have to compromise on seat-sharing as other alliance partners who have joined recently need to be accommodated.