PATNA: Former JD(U) national president RCP Singh, who was in the eye of a political storm in Bihar, on Thursday said he was keeping "all options open", including a formal entry into the BJP.
The former Union minister also lashed out at Chief Minister Nitish Kumar for the latest political u-turn that saw the de facto JD(U) leader dumping the BJP and realigning with the "Mahagathbandhan" of the RJD, Congress and the Left.
"I have all options open", said Singh and when pointedly asked whether he would like to join the BJP, he quipped "why not?" The bureaucrat turned politician, who had to give up his ministerial berth upon denial of another Rajya Sabha term by the JD(U), maintained that Kumar, the de facto leader of the party, "will not become the prime minister even if he were to be reborn seven times".
"These are not times of political instability in the country when Chandra Shekhar, H D Deve Gowda, I K Gujaral etc. could enjoy brief stints as PM," said Singh.
The JD(U) accused Singh of having become a mole of the saffron camp.
He denied allegations of having acted against the JD(U)'s interests at BJP's behest in the last assembly polls of 2020, and a few months later, having become a Union minister without consent of the Bihar CM.
"Why was the alliance not called off immediately after assembly polls if there was sabotage (bhitarghaat)? Why did senior party leaders congratulate me if my becoming a minister was an act of defiance?", asked Singh.
He alleged that Kumar "had made up his mind to betray the mandate of 2020 when people had voted the NDA back to power. I am just being used as an alibi to justify yet another volte-face. I wonder how many times can he switch sides".
Meanwhile, the BJP on Thursday cited recent cases of heinous crimes in Bihar and alleged involvement of some of the state ministers in criminal cases to claim that criminals have become "fearless" after the grand alliance came to power.
Former Union minister and BJP leader Ravi Shankar Prasad noted that two persons, a class 12 girl student and a solider, were shot in Patna, his Lok Sabha constituency, in the last 24 hours as he took a swipe at Chief Minister Nitish Kumar.
These are no routine crimes and show how emboldened criminals have become in the state within days of the new government assuming office, he told reporters.
If this is the situation in the state's capital, one can well imagine where the state is heading, he said.
"The state is returning to jungle raj," he alleged.
He also hit out at the government over the row over Bihar minister Kartikeya Singh's suspected involvement in a kidnapping case and alleged the state's agriculture minister was earlier linked to a rice scam.
Singh's lawyer has said the police investigation has found no evidence against him.
Prasad refuted the claim and said the Patna High Court had in 2017 rejected the RJD leader's plea for anticipatory bail by noting that the complaint's statement highlights his role in the abduction.
The court had asked him to surrender and to apply for regular bail, he said, accusing the police of trying to save him after the JD(U)-RJD-Congress formed the government.
Kumar on Thursday dismissed allegations of "return of jungle raj" by the BJP and asserted that the controversy surrounding newly inducted minister and RJD MLC Kartikeya Singh was being "looked into" for suitable action.
Asked about the BJP's charge, he told reporters in Patna, "I will answer them at an appropriate time. They are speaking a lot. At this moment, I just need to assure people that the pace of development under the new dispensation will be greater than ever before."
Prasad said the police's defence of Karikeya Singh has sent out the message to criminals that they can break the law and police will not act.
The BJP leader said his party will take on the government and stand with the people over their issues.
He also took a dig at JD(U) leader Kumar after one of his party MLAs, Bima Bharti, questioned him for the induction of Leshi Singh as a minister.
Infighting has begun within the party, he said.
Hitting back, Nitish asserted that the controversy surrounding the newly inducted minister and RJD MLC Kartikeya Singh was being "looked into" for suitable action.
The JD(U) leader also reprimanded party MLA Bima Bharti for raising questions over re-induction of Leshi Singh, who has been a minister for many years, and said the rebellious legislator will be "properly briefed by the party".
Kumar, who now heads a government that includes, besides his party and RJD, the Congress and the Left extending support from outside, was talking to reporters at the IGIMS hospital here where he had gone to enquire about the well-being of Bijendra Prasad Yadav, the eldest member of his cabinet, who was admitted previous night after taking ill.
Kumar was asked by journalists about the allegations of "return of jungle raj" by BJP leaders, who have been bombarding social media with incidents of crime and criminal cases involving ministers in the new cabinet, sore over loss of power.
"I will answer them at an appropriate time. They are speaking a lot. At this moment, I just need to assure the people that the pace of development under the new dispensation will be greater than ever before", said the chief minister.
Asked about a criminal case involving Kartikeya Singh, the state's law minister, Kumar said, "The matter is being looked into. Whatever is needed will be done."
The chief minister had on Wednesday said he had no information about the controversy surrounding Singh, known to be close to dreaded former Mokama MLA Anant Kumar Singh who was disqualified last month after conviction in a case relating to the recovery of explosives, arms and ammunition from his house.
Kumar, the JD(U)'s de facto leader, reacted with obvious displeasure when he was asked about the outbursts of Bima Bharti, a former minister herself, who was livid over the re-induction of Leshi Singh.
Both Singh and Bharti got elected from adjoining assembly segments of Purnea district.
Singh's late husband and Bharti's spouse are said to have been rivals with a reputation for use of muscle power.
"There is no problem with Leshi Singh," Kumar stated about the minister for food and consumer protection, pointing out that she has been in the cabinet for a long.
The CM also disapproved of Bharti "who has herself been made a minister in the past", going public with her grievances.
"She will be tackled at the party level. If she sees reason, fine, else she shall be free to chart her own course," Kumar said curtly.
The CM was also asked about his meeting with RJD president Lalu Prasad, his arch rival whose younger son Tejashwi Yadav is back as his deputy while elder one Tej Pratap Yadav has also been given a cabinet berth.
"He and I go a long way back. We may have treaded separate paths for some time, but you all know the relationship we share," said Kumar about Prasad whom he has often called his "bada bhai" (elder brother) despite a fierce political rivalry.
According to sources close to the ailing RJD supremo, the septuagenarian had on Wednesday night requested the chief minister to stay put and "guide" his children in their political journey.
"Don't go here and there anymore," Prasad is said to have told Kumar in a jocular vein, in an oblique reference to the chief minister having made many a political about turn.
Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Tejashwi Prasad Yadav on Thursday alleged that BJP, "having got nothing else to do", was trying to "defame" the new government in the state as it was "uncomfortable" with the 'Mahagathbandhan's pro-people stance.'
About law minister and RJD MLC Kartikeya Singh, whose alleged criminal antecedents are being highlighted by the BJP, Yadav said the law will take its own course.
"The BJP is now left with nothing to do. It is also uncomfortable over Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's announcement on job creation in his Independence Day speech. So it is trying to defame us," said the RJD heir apparent.
"We need not care about the BJP and a section of the media which is loyal towards them. We shall keep working for the people," said the young leader.
He pooh-poohed BJP's claim that with RJD back in power, it was a "return of jungle raj in Bihar", but added that Kartikeya Singh, whose induction is being criticized by the saffron party, was yet to be proven guilty of a crime by a court of law.
He also rebuffed BJP's claim that Singh got sworn in on the very day he was supposed to appear before a court which had issued a warrant following the RJD MLC's failure to appear, despite summons, in a kidnapping case.
"After the warrant, the court has granted interim protection against arrest. We will follow the court's directions," added Yadav.