Senior Janata Dal (United) leader and former Member of Parliament (MP) KC Tyagi whose stand on various issues often highlighted his party’s differences with ally BJP, resigned from the party’s national spokesperson on Sunday, saying there is “little to defend the party from”.   In his letter to Nitish Kumar, he cited “personal reasons” for his resignation.

However, sources suggested that the resignation was due to the leadership’s displeasure with his recent statements on various issues. What also worked against Tyagi was a recent joint statement he issued with Opposition leaders on the Israel-Hamas war. Rajiv Ranjan Prasad will be replacing Tyagi as the new national spokesperson of the party, which is in power in Bihar under the leadership of Chief Minister Nitish Kumar.

This is the second time in two years he resigned or was dropped as national spokesperson of the party. He was previously dropped from the position in March 2023, although this decision was reversed within two months following  Kumar’s intervention.

“The National President of Janata Dal (United), Nitish Kumar (Chief Minister, Bihar) has appointed Rajiv Ranjan Prasad as the National Spokesperson. Shri K.C. Tyagi, who is in the party on the post of spokesperson, has resigned from the post of party spokesperson due to personal reason,” the JDU has said in a statement.

Tyagi, party leaders said, will continue in his another role as “political advisor”.

It is believed that frequent comments of Tyagi, who is based in Delhi and enjoys an unlikely high profile in the national media for a regional party leader due to his experience and articulation, on central government’s policies were seen by many within his party as unhelpful to the BJP-JD(U) ties.Be it on the Uniform Civil Code, the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, the lateral or even the Palestine issue among a number of other matters, his articulation of the JD(U)’s stand different from the BJP created ripples and left the saffron party less than amused. He was the only member of the ruling National Democratic Alliance in a recent meeting, which included several opposition parties members, with Mohammad Makram Balawi, Secretary General of League of Parliamentarians.

According to sources, Tyagi resigned because the party leadership felt that his statements, including the recent one on the Israel-Palestine issue and the lateral entry controversy, deviated from the party line. He had urged the Centre to stop arms supplies to Israel and had stated that India supports peace and a ceasefire in Gaza.

Last month, when the PM broached the subject of UCC once again, Tyagi said the party supported UCC but wanted a wider consultation. He said this was a position made clear by Kumar himself in his letter to the Law Commission back in 2017.

Tyagi was among the parliamentarians and former MPs who put out a statement targeting Israel. “We, the undersigned Parliamentarians from across the political spectrum, unequivocally condemn the ongoing Zionist aggression and the heinous genocide of the Palestinian people by Israel. This brutal assault is not only an affront to humanity but also a gross violation of international law and the principles of justice and peace,” the statement said.Party sources alleged that Tyagi made statements without consulting the leaders and that there were talks of alleged differences within the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) due to his remarks.

In his letter, Tyagi has stated that he had earlier, too, requested to be relieved of organisational responsibility. “You must have noticed that I have kept myself from TV debates for the past few months. I am not able to do justice to the post as spokesperson due to other work. Please relieve me from this responsibility. I will be available to publicise about you and Bihar government’s achievements,” he wrote.

Tyagi, the 73-year-old leader, has been with Nitish Kumar throughout his political journey and has been considered as a prominent face of the party. He was a Rajya Sabha MP from Bihar from 2013 to 2016 and was a Lok Sabha member from 1989 to 1991 from the Hapur constituency.

Tyagi has been a Rajya Sabha member representing Bihar and has also held the position of chairman of the parliamentary standing committee on industry. Previously, he was a member of the ninth Lok Sabha and served as chairman of both the committee on papers laid on the table and the central warehousing corporation.

Tyagi began his political career in 1974 and made his first attempt at the Lok Sabha elections in 1984, contesting from the Hapur-Ghaziabad constituency.

It may be noted that the BJP has been reaching out to allies to maintain coordination and harmony in the ruling National Democratic Alliance in its bid to quell reports of differences in the bloc.