Patna:
Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar has confirmed that his alliance with the BJP is over. In a meeting with Governor DY Patil this afternoon, he asked for the BJP's 11 ministers to be dismissed from his cabinet.
BJP leader and state's Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi addressed the media after the split. Here are the highlights:
- JD(U) has broken a 17-yr-old alliance. This will go down as a black day in Bihar's political history. JD(U) has broken our trust.
- The 2010 electoral win was not the BJP or JD(U)'s win - it was a victory for the coalition
- When Narendra Modi was appointed as campaign head, JD(U)'s official response was that it is BJP's internal matter. We had told them that when we decide on a name for the PM, we will take them into confidence. What has happened in these past 4-5 days that such a move was precipitated?
- Nitish should have resigned on moral grounds since he became the Chief Minister as he was elected as the NDA parliamentary head in Bihar.
- He could have resigned, been elected the JD(U)'s leader and staked claim.
- Our behaviour has been exemplary as an alliance partner, and we have had a very important role in all vital decisions.
- In the last 17 years, the BJP has always tried to keep the alliance together. In the last seven years in Bihar we have tried to run the alliance without any problems.
- BJP time and again assured JD(U) that they would be consulted before a decision on PM candidate is made yet they decided to part ways.
- JD(U) has not only broken our trust, it has broken people's trust and people will give a fitting reply to this in the elections.
- BJP calls for a Bihar Bandh on June 18 against this betrayal and appeals to the people of Bihar to see how their mandate has been betrayed
- The people will respond during the Lok Sabha polls
- The issue of principles raised by JD(U) is matter of convenience. People become secular or communal when required.
- Those who are being called 'communal' today will become 'secular' in 2014. Whenever its convenient, we are secular and whenever inconvenient we are communal... that can't be.
- People are scared that a person from a backward caste, a tea stall owner's son can become the PM.
- If there are problems that concern Bihar, we can deal with it. We declined to meet the Chief Minister because there was no case of discussing decisions taken by the national leadership of the BJP with him.
- Why was the Cabinet meeting called on a Sunday? What was the urgency?
- We have never interfered with the internal matters of any other party nor will we let anyone interfere with ours.
- We appeal to people of Bihar to support our bandh call against the betrayal of the people's mandate.
- We will focus our energies on the Lok Sabha polls, we are not in favour of fresh elections in the state.
- We will not try to form a government in Bihar. We have 91 MLAs.