Nitish Kumar's "Not A Claimant, Nor Desire" Reply To PM Question

Nitish Kumar, reconnecting with opposition parties in Delhi after dumping the BJP in Bihar, said today he "is neither a claimant" for the Prime Minister's job in 2024, nor does he desire it.

After meeting with Left leader Sitaram Yechury, the Bihar Chief Minister said he is in Delhi for the sake of opposition unity.

He fielded questions on whether his meetings in Delhi signaled efforts to gather support for his run as the opposition's Prime Ministerial candidate versus Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2024.

"I am not a claimant, nor do I desire it," Nitish Kumar told reporters, brushing off the question.

"We are together, that is why I am coming here," he said.

"I have had a long association with the CPI-M from my younger days. You all have not seen me, but whenever I used to come to Delhi, I used to come to this office. Today we are again all together. Our entire focus is to unite all Left parties, the regional parties in different states and the Congress. This will be a big deal if all of us come together," he said.

Weeks after forming a new government with Tejashwi Yadav's RJD (Rashtriya Janata Dal), Congress and other parties in Bihar, Nitish Kumar has lined up a series of meetings in Delhi.

Last evening, he met with Congress leader Rahul Gandhi. Today, he also met Delhi Chief Minister and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) chief Arvind Kejriwal and Samajwadi Party's Mulayam Singh Yadav and his son Akhilesh Yadav.

Mr Yechury said Mr Kumar returning to the opposition fold and wanting to be part of the fight against the BJP was a great signal for Indian politics.

"First, the agenda is to unite all parties, not to decide on the PM candidate. When the time comes, we will decide the PM candidate and let you all know," said the CPI-M leader.

Mr Kumar is also likely to meet other opposition leaders like NCP leader Sharad Pawar, Samajwadi Party's Akhilesh Yadav and INLD leader Om Prakash Chautala.

Mr Kumar met Rahul Gandhi for the first time after forming his new coalition, which includes the Congress. Congress leaders said Mr Kumar thanked Rahul Gandhi for his party's support in Bihar.

Both parties will continue their "concrete discussions" in preps for the 2024 national election, said sources quoted by PTI.

Mr Kumar's Delhi visit comes days after Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao visited Bihar and held discussions with him.

Mr Rao, or KCR, dodged a direct response to a question on whether he would back Nitish Kumar as the opposition's candidate for Prime Minister. He said the opposition parties would meet and make that decision.