Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar Kumar's slogan of "sangh-mukt" country has triggered a national debate.
Amid reports that chances of merger of JD(U) and Ajit Singh's Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) are almost over, Bihar Chief Minister and JD(U) president Nitish Kumar said the initiative to this effect had come from RLD and so this should be answered by them only.
"Initiative to this (merger) had come from Rashtriya Lok Dal itself. They should answer this (if chances of merger are over)," Mr Kumar told reporters in Patna.
Mr Kumar, whose slogan of "sangh-mukt" country has triggered a national debate and also a talk over his chances of becoming Prime Minister after the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, said he has already made it clear that he has no claim for the PM post.
"At JD(U) National Council meeting recently I had said categorically there is no claim from my side for PM post," he said.
Asked that NCP president Sharad Pawar has described him as PM material from the grouping of anti-BJP parties, Mr Kumar said he was indebted to Mr Pawar who is among "the senior-most leaders of the country".
To another question about state Congress' view that Rahul Gandhi alone is the PM candidate, Mr Kumar did not give any specific reply.
Congress minister Madan Jha was present at the press conference.
Mr Kumar said, "He (Jha) is sitting here as Revenue minister in my government. This is not a meeting of the Grand Secular Alliance."
About media reports that PM Narendra Modi wants Mr Kumar to travel with him to Lumbini, which is being seen as his closeness with him post-Bihar poll, Mr Kumar said he has no knowledge of this.
Mr Kumar also said he will attend anti-liquor programmes at Dhanbad in Jharkhand and in Lucknow and Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh.