With the JD(U) apparently keen on the projection of Nitish Kumar as the Opposition's prime ministerial face in the 2024 parliamentary election, Bihar Congress president Madan Mohan Jha on Wednesday said Rahul Gandhi or whoever he picks will be the party's prime ministerial candidate.
Jha's assertion came days after JD(U) chief Nitish Kumar snapped ties with the BJP and joined hands with the RJD and the Congress to form the Government in Bihar. Asked if Nitish would be acceptable to the Congress as the Opposition's face, he told reporters, "Neither Nitish Kumar ji has said that he is the prime ministerial candidate, nor have we said that he will be our PM candidate."
"Our candidate is our leader Rahul Gandhi ji or whosoever he nominates for the post our entire party will stand behind that person," he said at the AICC Press conference. The Bihar Congress chief, however, said the issue was not at hand and would be discussed later as two years were left for the Lok Sabha election. Jha was joined by AICC Bihar incharge Bhakta Charan Das and party leader Kanhaiya Kumar.
Das said what happened in Bihar has brought a new change and shown the way to the country that not only has the government changed but a ray of hope has also emerged.
At a time when senior Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad has expressed his resentment by declining to be part of the newly formed Political Affairs Committee in Jammu Kashmir, he raised questions over the distribution of ministerial berths in Bihar saying while the government formation was a welcome step, his party has got a raw deal. "Every constituent in the coalition had walked away with a good share of ministerial berths except for the Congress," he said.
Azad, part of the G23 grouping, said the distribution of portfolios has been done without any logic and "it is really surprising that none from the party pressed for an equal share of berths".
"You see RJD has 79 MLAs and has secured 17 berths, JDU has 46 MLAs (including Independent Sumit Kumar Singh) and has 13 ministers, including the chief minister, and Hindustani Awam Morcha (HAM) has four MLAs and one minister. Congress with 19 MLAs has only two ministers," Azad told a news agency.