Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Friday made it clear that there is a strain in the ties between the Janata Dal (United) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), and said that the current situation of the coalition is very difficult.
" And we have to now decide on what to do in this difficult situation. Talks are going on from almost all quarters. On one hand, they are saying that the alliance should continue for its very old. On the other hand, the situation is such... there are difficulties," he told mediapersons here after returning from a tour this afternoon.
Janata Dal (United) chief Sharad Yadav earlier in the day conceded that the crisis has been stoked by the BJP's recent decision to choose Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi to head its election campaign.
BJP President Rajnath Singh has said that his party would never want such a long alliance with the Janata Dal (United) to end.
The Janata Dal (United), which is said to be upset over Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi's elevation as the chairman of campaign committee for 2014, is planning to end its 18-year alliance with the BJP.
JD (U) has 118 MLAs in 243-member Bihar assembly and needs the support of only four more MLAs to reach the magic figure.
There are 91 MLAS from BJP, 21 from RJD and one each from LJP and CPI in the state assembly.