As the JD (U) prefers to persue “wait and watch” policy until Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi is “officially” declared as the prime ministerial candidate for the 2014 lok Sabha elections, the newly appointed BJP vice-president CP Thakur has suggested the JD(U) to “read the writing on the wall” and “act accordingly” in view of immense popularity of Modi across the country.
Reacting to re-induction of Narendra Modi in the BJP Parliamentary Board, Thakur told The Pioneer that the party should “encash” on the popularity of Narendra Modi for improving the party’s tally in the next general elections.
He stated that the JD(U) should not have any qualm about the projection of Narendra Modi as the prime ministerial candidate for the next lok Sabha elections.
“The mool mantra (basic principle) of the politics is to read the writing on the wall and those who refuse to do so, do not know themselves where they will end up ultimately,” he noted.
The former Union Health Minister said that the elevation of Narendra Modi in the party’s hierarchy will not have any adverse impact on the relationship between the BJP and the JD(U) as the NDA remains intact and strong in the State as before.
“Firstly, the BJP Parliamentary Board has to decide the party’s prime ministerial candidate and subsequently the Board will build consensus on the name by holding discussions with various allies of the NDA,” the former Bihar BJP president remarked.
Thakur said that there is an unanimity in the State BJP too that the party should put the Narendra Modi’s popularity to best use to oust the Congress-led UPA Government from the power.
When asked whether he was happy over his appointment as the BJP vice-president, Thakur said, “It is right and I thank BJP president Rajnath Singh and members of the Parliamentary Board for giving me this responsibility.”
He said that Modi will be invited to Bihar at the time when it is sensed that his presence in the State will help the party bolster its position.
Expressing his happiness over his appointment as the party secretary, BJP MlA from Nokha and a staunch supporter of Narendra Modi, Rameshwar Prasad Chaurasia said that the BJP and the JD(U) will contest the lok Sabha elections together and there is no chance of any break-up between the two.
“Don’t worry, nobody is going to have any tie-up with the Congress,” he remarked in an oblique reference to Chief Minister Nitish Kumar.
State JD(U) president Vashishtha Narayan Singh said that the elevation of Narendra Modi is an internal matter of the BJP and his party is not affected by it in any manner.
The JD(U) leader said that the name of the prime ministerial candidate has yet not been decided and hence the party does not find it appropriate to waste its energy by debating over an “internal matter” of a different party.
RJD chief lalu Prasad said that Chief Minister Nitish Kumar was not happy over the elevation of Modi in the party but he could also not desert the NDA because of his own compulsions.
“Everybody knows that Narendra Modi is an undeclared prime ministerial candidate of the BJP but nobody can help if somebody does not want to see the reality,” he remarked.
He alleged that Modi enjoys the backing of the United States, dubbing him as the “PM candidate of foreigners”.
“Narendra Modi is a very poignant symbol of communalism and hence now secular forces should appreciate this fact with all the seriousness and should initiate steps accordingly,” the RJD chief added.