Patna:
In his first visit to Bihar after his party's bitter break-up with Nitish Kumar's Janata Dal (United) or JD(U), BJP President Rajnath Singh launched a scathing attack on the Chief Minister, saying his party could be "wiped out of Indian politics."
"Anyone who joins hands with the Congress, will be wiped out of politics. Our friends in the JD(U) need to understand this. You had a relationship with the Lotus, and you know that if a drop of water falls on a lotus leaf, it shines like a pearl. Once the drop falls off, no one cares about it," Mr Singh said on Sunday, in an address to party workers in Patna.
The BJP chief was referring to the 17-year-old alliance that Mr Kumar's party called off just over a week ago. But in his criticism also lay a larger message about the recent bonhomie between the JD(U) and the Congress, with speculation over whether the two would join hands. That was magnified after Prime Minister Manmohan Singh described Mr Kumar as "secular"; the latter thanked him in return, even saying that the PM's praise "gives me comfort".
Narendra Modi, who the JD(U) had propped up as the reason for the split, was also mentioned. The BJP chief rejected the former ally's allegations that Mr Modi was an "autocratic" and "divisive" leader.
"You have had no problems with Modi between 2002 and 2013... But all of a sudden you have found fault with him," Mr Singh said.
Mr Modi's recent elevation as the BJP's election campaign chief was perceived by many, including the JD(U), as the stepping stone to being the party's face for 2014. Something the JD(U) termed as unacceptable, citing the killing of hundreds of Muslim during the riots in 2002 that Mr Modi failed to check as the chief minister.
"Anyone who joins hands with the Congress, will be wiped out of politics. Our friends in the JD(U) need to understand this. You had a relationship with the Lotus, and you know that if a drop of water falls on a lotus leaf, it shines like a pearl. Once the drop falls off, no one cares about it," Mr Singh said on Sunday, in an address to party workers in Patna.
The BJP chief was referring to the 17-year-old alliance that Mr Kumar's party called off just over a week ago. But in his criticism also lay a larger message about the recent bonhomie between the JD(U) and the Congress, with speculation over whether the two would join hands. That was magnified after Prime Minister Manmohan Singh described Mr Kumar as "secular"; the latter thanked him in return, even saying that the PM's praise "gives me comfort".
Narendra Modi, who the JD(U) had propped up as the reason for the split, was also mentioned. The BJP chief rejected the former ally's allegations that Mr Modi was an "autocratic" and "divisive" leader.
"You have had no problems with Modi between 2002 and 2013... But all of a sudden you have found fault with him," Mr Singh said.
Mr Modi's recent elevation as the BJP's election campaign chief was perceived by many, including the JD(U), as the stepping stone to being the party's face for 2014. Something the JD(U) termed as unacceptable, citing the killing of hundreds of Muslim during the riots in 2002 that Mr Modi failed to check as the chief minister.
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