This Article is From Jul 21, 2015

No Meeting of Hearts Despite Alliance, Says Ram Vilas Paswan on Ties with Lalu Prasad

No Meeting of Hearts Despite Alliance, Says Ram Vilas Paswan on Ties with Lalu Prasad

File photo of Union Minister of Consumer Affairs,Food and Public Distribution, Ram Vilas Paswan

New Delhi: Union minister Ram Vilas Paswan and Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief, Lalu Prasad may have been together in alliance for five years, but it was never a meeting of hearts, said Mr Paswan.

Speaking to PTI, Mr Paswan said, "I never had a heart to heart relationship with Lalu. Even he did not have it with me. I never wanted to go with Lalu in an alliance. Except once in 2010 Assembly polls, I never fought elections in Bihar in alliance with Lalu. In 2009, I was in UPA due to Congress President Sonia Gandhi's initiative."

In alliance since 2009, Mr Paswan's Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) blamed the Congress for delaying the seat sharing agreement between them and Mr Prasad's RJD, only to join hands with BJP just before the general elections last year.   

With assembly elections round the corner in Bihar, the LJP chief had some advice to offer to Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar who has teamed up with Mr Prasad's RJD. Mr Paswan said, "Lalu is one person who keeps one hand on the neck of his alliance partner and another on the feet."

The LJP chief believes that not projecting a chief ministerial candidate by NDA will benefit the alliance.

"This time it is BJP's right to claim Chief Ministership if NDA comes to power. They are the largest party. We are fighting under the leadership of Narendra Modi under NDA. Whoever is chosen by him as Chief Minister is acceptable to us," said Mr Paswan.

Once bitter critics, Mr Kumar's Janata Dal United (JDU) and Mr Prasad's RJD has joined hands with Congress to form a broad alliance against the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) which has Union ministers Ram Vilas Paswan's Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) and Upendra Kushwaha's Rashtriya Lok Samata Party (RLSP) with the BJP.
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