Have no such thoughts: Nitish Kumar denies PM ambitions again

India

oi-Deepika S

New
Delhi,
Aug
12:
Nitish
Kumar,
who
stirred
a
massive
political
storm
by
snapping
ties
with
the
BJP
in
Bihar,
on
Friday
denied
once
again
any
aspiration
to
become
a
prime
minister.

“I
say
this
with
folded
hands,
I
have
no
such
thoughts…
My
work
is
to
work
for
everyone.
I
will
make
an
effort
to
see
that
all
the
Opposition
parties
work
together.
If
they
do,
it
will
be
good,”
said
Nitish
Kumar
on
reports
of
him
being
the
Opposition’s
PM
candidate
in
2024.

Nitish
stressed
that
he
would
want
to
unite
everyone
in
the
Opposition.
“I
am
doing
positive
work.
I
am
receiving
a
lot
of
phone
calls,
I
am
doing
everything.
I
will
do
everything
but
first
I
will
do
my
work
here,”
he
said.

Earlier,
Nitish
Kumar
had
jibed
Prime
Minister
Narendra
Modi
over
the
next
Lok
Sabha
elections:
“He
won
in
2014,
but
will
he
in
2024?”
He
had
told
reporters
even
then
that
he
is
“not
a
contender
for
anything”
when
asked
if
he
wants
to
be
PM
candidate.
“The
question
to
ask
is
if
the
person
who
came
in
2014
will
win
in
2024,”
he
said.

‘He
won
in
2014,
should
worry
about
2024
elections’:
Nitish
Kumar’s
swipe
at
PM
Modi

Opposition
parties
have
claimed
the
JD(U)
breaking
ranks
with
the
BJP
and
joining
hands
with
the
RJD,
Congress
and
others
is
an
indication
of
the
change
in
Indian
politics,
asserting
that
their
vision
to
fight
the
saffron
party
and
its
“politics
of
intimidation”
has
gained
momentum.

Kumar,
who
has
dumped
the
BJP
for
the
second
time
after
severing
ties
in
2013
and
reconciling
in
2017,
is
being
talked
about
in
the
political
circles
as
a
probable
opposition
face
against
Modi
in
2024
but
many
still
view
the
JD(U)
leader
with
suspicion
citing
his
numerous
‘U-turns’.

Also
several
other
opposition
leaders
like
Mamata
Banerjee,
Telangana
Chief
Minister
K
Chandrashekar
Rao
and
Congress
leader
Rahul
Gandhi
have
hinted
at
prime
ministerial
ambitions.