JD(U) sets Dec deadline for BJP to name PM candidate

Candidate must be 'secular', insists party in a dig at Narendra Modi

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, along with leaders of the Janata Dal (United), on Sunday set December 2013 as the deadline for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to name the Prime Ministerial candidate of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA).

“The JD (U) wants the name of the NDA’s candidate to be announced before the end of this year,” said the party's Bihar unit president, Vashista Narayan Singh, at the end of JD (U)’s two-day national executive meet here.

The party also passed a resolution in which it listed criteria for the NDA coalition's prime ministerial candidate. “The prime ministerial candidate of the NDA should be a leader who should abide by the national agenda of governance. The leader should set aside implementation of the uniform civil code and must accept the judgement of the court on the issue of the Ram temple in Ayodhya. There should be no doubt on the secular credentials of the leader of the NDA,” said the resolution.

The resolution further noted that the NDA had named Atal Bihari Vajpayee as the prime ministerial candidate in the 2004 Lok Sabha election and a similar decision was made in the 2009 Lok Sabha election, when L K Advani was named the prime ministerial candidate. Hence, there was no reason to change the accepted tradition of the NDA.

While speaking to party members on Sunday, Nitish Kumar said there would be no compromise on the secular credentials of the party and threatened that the JD (U) would take necessary steps if there was any attempt to make genetic changes on the agreed principles of forming the NDA.

During a late-evening dinner meeting with BJP President Rajnath Singh yesterday, Kumar had categorically said the NDA should name the prime ministerial candidate according to the tradition of the alliance.

“We want to remain together. When did we say that we want to part ways? But when we want to stay together, there are some fundamental issues. If our view is ignored, then we will take a step. We want the train to be on track but if the train derails, we will decide according to the situation and time on what to do. Who has seen tomorrow?” said Kumar. He clarified he had no ambition to become prime minister of the country.

Without naming Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi in his speech to party members, the Bihar chief minister said: “India does not run by mere projection. But some people think that they will create a wave and people will accept it.”