New Delhi, Jan 29: The Congress on Monday attacked Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar with another “aaya Kumar, gaya Kumar” jibe at him, a day after the JD(U) leader’s latest volte-face in the state.
The Congress also posted on X a widely shared meme on his frequent volte-face in the last few years, which said that the governor expressed surprise when Kumar went back to take his scarf he had left at the Raj Bhawan within 15 minutes of his oath taking for the ninth time.
Kumar on Sunday resigned as the Chief Minister of Bihar, saying “things were not working well” for him in the Mahagathbandhan or the grand alliance and the opposition bloc INDIA, and formed a new government with the BJP, which he had dumped less than 18 months ago.
“After taking oath, Nitish Kumar ji forgot his ‘muffler’ (scarf) in Raj Bhawan.
When he came back halfway to pick up, the Governor was shocked that this time not even 15 minutes had passed,” Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said in a post in Hindi on X.
In another post in Hindi, he said, “Girgit ko bhi karni padi naye rang ki khoj, ye shoorveer badalte hain itne rang roz (even chameleon had to search for a new colour as these ‘warriors’ change so many colours everyday).” Later, speaking with reporters in Uttar Dinajpur in West Bengal during the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra, Ramesh said, “What can I say? I said yesterday ‘aaya Kumar, gaya Kumar’. Nitish Kumar gives a tough competition to a chameleon.” Ramesh’s swipe was a wordplay on the expression ‘aaya Ram gaya Ram’, which was used widely in politics in the 1990s referring to the frequent floor-crossing and switching of parties.
Ramesh said Kumar keeps resigning repeatedly and keeps changing his “political colours”.
The Congress leader said Kumar participated in three meetings of the INDIA bloc but gave no indication that he was going to “betray” the opposition.
“He (Kumar) has betrayed us. At the right time, people of Bihar will give a befitting response to him and the one who makes him dance to his tunes, the prime minister,” Ramesh said.
Lashing out at Kumar, Ramesh said on Sunday it is clear that a “political drama” is being staged in order to divert attention from the Congress’ Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra.
Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) President Sharad Pawar and AICC General Secretary Ramesh Chennithala gave strong reactions to Nitish Kumar’s “unprincipled politics” despite attending four meetings of the INDIA bloc in the last six months.
“I recall how he had invited all the Opposition leaders to Patna a few months ago and waxed eloquent on how to rein in the Bharatiya Janata Party and he was working on those lines till recently… What happened in the last eight-ten days I have no idea,” said Pawar.
Flaying Nitish Kumar for “speaking one thing today and doing another the next day”, Chennithala said trust is very important in politics and today “he has forfeited that trust.”
Pawar said Nitish Kumar has made a record of sorts by allying with different parties twice in a single term in office as Chief Minister, by “discarding his ideology and joining the BJP” to form the government in Bihar.
“Earlier, he was with the BJP, then he joined hands with the RJD, and now again he has allied with the BJP… Such a situation has never occurred in the country before and he has set a new record,” said Pawar.
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Monday said his Bihar counterpart Nitish Kumar did not do the right thing by exiting INDIA bloc, calling his conduct not good for democracy.
Kejriwal made the remark at a press conference while responding to a question about Nitish forming a new government with BJP in Bihar.
“I feel that he should not have left. He has done wrong. Such conduct is not good for democracy. What my understanding is that this (his exit) will cause loses for NDA in Bihar, instead of benefitting them. INDIA bloc will benefit,” he said.
Other Maharashtra leaders like Shiv Sena (UBT)’s Sanjay Raut and Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi President Prakash Ambedkar have also commented on the political upheavals that rocked Bihar during the weekend, besides posing question marks on the fate of INDIA bloc and its efficacy in challenging the BJP.
Nitish Kumar Sunday resigned as the Chief Minister of Bihar, saying “things were not working well” for him in the ‘Mahagathbandhan’ or the grand alliance and the opposition bloc INDIA, and formed a new government with the BJP, which he had dumped less than 18 months ago. (Agencies)
