Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar received a severe jolt on Tuesday as Janata Dal (U) candidate from Muslim-dominated Kishanganj withdrew from the electoral fray in favour of the Congress nominee.
JD(U) candidate Akhtarul Iman had recently defected from the RJD. Earlier, he was the RJD MlA from Kochadhaman Assembly constituency in Kishanganj district. Iman was among 13 RJD MlAs who had rebelled against the party and sought a separate status. He was rewarded by Nitish Kumar with a party ticket from Kishanganj lS seat.
“I have decided to withdraw my candidature from Kishanganj Parliamentary seat in favour of Congress candidate and sitting MP Maulana Asrarul Haque to stop division of minority votes in the constituency,” said the young Muslim leader of the area. Shocked at the candidate’s decision, ruling party leaders have refused to comment on the development.
“I’ll not say anything on this until our leader Nitish Kumar returns from the poll campaign. But, yes, it’s not good for the party at this moment,” said a senior JD(U) leader requesting anonymity. Now that the last date for filing nomination papers has expired, JD(U) cannot field any other candidate as replacement for Akhtarul Iman.
“I had entered into the fray from Kishanganj to defeat the communal forces represented by Narendra Modi. When I could sense that my candidature will eventually split the minority vote, I decided to withdraw in favour of the Congress candidate,” said Akhtarul Iman.
He, however, confirmed that he would remain in the JD(U). Significantly, leaders close to Akhtarul Iman in Kishanganj said that since he was not getting enough support and cooperation from JD(U) leaders, he decided to pull out of the electoral race.
“I tried to contact the Chief Minister to apprise him with my decision to withdraw from the race, but somehow I could not get through to him,” said Akhtarul Iman, adding that he has informed local JD(U) leaders of Kishanganj about his decision. Now, Kishanganj is all set for a direct contest between Asrarul Haque of the Congress and Dilip Kumar Jaiswal of the BJP. Election in Kishanganj will be held on April 24.