Modi (top) and Nitish

Patna, Sept. 19: Chief minister Nitish Kumar today disassociated himself from his Gujarat counterpart Narendra Modi’s three-day fast for peace and communal harmony that concluded in Ahmedabad today. He said it was “not appropriate” for him to comment on the ventures of other political leaders.

Replying to a question on the sidelines of his janata darbar, Nitish said: “It is not necessary for me to comment on an individual’s programme. Every leader is free to take up his or her programmes. My comments on such issues are hardly warranted.”

The Bihar chief minister was circumspect when he was asked about Modi’s prime ministerial ambitions. “The BJP is in alliance with the JD(U) in Bihar. They have not yet officially declared anyone as its prime ministerial candidate. Only when the party informs us about any decision will I be able to give my opinion,” Nitish said.

Asked if he too would like to serve the country in the capacity of the Prime Minister, Nitish said: “The Prime Minister’s post is too big for me to aspire for. The people have given me the mandate to serve Bihar, which I am doing with the best of my capacity. I am serving the country by serving Bihar. I harbour no ambitions to become the Prime Minister.”

Nitish added that such questions “upset” him. “Some people create confusion by raising my name in the race for the Prime Minister’s position,” he said.

In his first reaction over the issue of Modi’s fast, the chief minister clarified that there was no alliance between the BJP and the JD(U) in Gujarat. He added that there would be no “alliance between the BJP and the JD(U) in Gujarat, especially in the context of Narendra Modi”.

On some of his cabinet colleagues from the BJP joining Narendra Modi on his fast, Nitish said: “The ministers are associated with that party (BJP). I can hardly do anything on the ministers doing something in the capacity of the leaders of the BJP.”

Nitish, apparently, did not prefer to vent his reaction against his ministers on a public forum. But the fact remains that several JD(U) leaders, some of them very close to Nitish, openly spoke against Narendra Modi.

The JD(U) general secretary Shivanand Tiwari virtually declared that “the man (Modi) who failed to carry on Rajdharma with five crore people of Gujarat, was hardly capable of doing justice with 125 crore people of the country”. Water resources minister Vijay Kumar Choudhary said Modi was “irrelevant” for Bihar.