PATNA: JD(U)’s Prashant Kishor on Sunday thanked Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra for “formal and unequivocal” rejection of the NRC and reassured the people of Bihar, ruled by his party, that CAA and NRC will not be implemented in the state.
The BJP, an ally of the JD(U) headed by Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, got rankled by the commendation of the opposition party by the former election strategist. The saffron party came out with a statement criticising “over intelligent and super knowledgeable people” for their propaganda on NRC and asserted that the CAA was passed in Parliament with JD(U)’s support and “it will be implemented in all concerned states, including Bihar”.
“I join my voice with all to thank #Congress leadership for their formal and unequivocal rejection of #CAA-NRC. Both @rahulgandhi & @priyankagandhi deserve special thanks for their efforts on this count,” Kishor tweeted reacting to the Congress Working Committee (CWC) resolution.
The CWC has demanded that the CAA be withdrawn and the process of NPR stopped forthwith, accusing the BJP-led government at the Centre of using its brute majority to impose a “divisive and discriminatory” agenda.
Forty two-year-old Kishor, whose first claim to fame was the management of Narendra Modi’s election campaign in 2014, said, “Also would like to reassure to all — Bihar mein CAA-NRC laagu nahin hoga (CAA-NRC will not be implemented in Bihar)”.
Kishor’s recent tirades against his party for supporting the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill and his vociferous opposition to NPR and NRC had raised the hackles of the BJP.
The saffron party’s Bihar unit spokesperson Nikhil Anand came out with a statement in response, dripping with sarcasm but without mentioning Kishor by name.
“Some over intelligent and super knowledgeable people are creating propaganda on NRC. But the fact is that there is no initiative by the central government on the issue. We thank the PM, the HM for bringing such much-needed legislation of CAA. (PTI)
