'Nautankibaaj' Nitish doing drama on Tejaswi's resignation: BJP

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on 12 July slammed Nitish Kumar for giving four-day deadline to Deputy Chief Minister Tejaswi Yadav to prove his innocence in corruption case and said the Bihar Chief Minister is doing drama to keep himself safe.

"Nitish ji is Nautankibaaz(drama king). He is playing politics very smartly. He has given time to RJD just to keep himself safe. Everything is clear after the CBI raid and FIR.Nitish is playing gimmick and people of Bihar know this game. He should not do this drama," BJP leader Gopla Narayan Singh told ANI.

Echoing the same, BJP leader Ashwani Chaubey said Nitish is trying to give clean chit to Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief Lalu Prasad Yadav and his family.

"This is laughable. They are doing drama and nothing else. The people are trying to give clean chit to Lalu Prasad and his family. Lalu has defamed Bihar and politics. There is no place for such corrupt politicians. Nitish should oust such corrupt leaders. They are trying to deceive the people by doing this drama," he told ANI.

Nitish Kumar-led Janata Dal (United) yesterday gave four days to RJD to decide on the resignation of Tejaswi Yadav, who has been facing allegations of corruption in connection with a land-for-hotels case.

The JD (U), however, did not ask for the resignation of Tejaswi and asked him to "come out with facts in public against the accusations" within four days.

Chairing a crucial meeting of JD(U) legislators, ex- legislators, office bearers and district chiefs, Nitish Kumar was quoted as saying that his party knows how to follow "gatbandhan dharma" (coalition dharma) and also making "political sacrifices".

"Party knows how to follow gatbandhan dharma...JD(U) has a record of facing political challenges by making political sacrifices," JD(U) spokesman Neeraj Kumar told reporters while briefing about the meeting.

The RJD, however, ruled out resignation of Tejaswi and said his work as Deputy Chief Minister was being appreciated by the people.

"Tejaswi Yadav's work as Deputy Chief Minister and minister of road construction and building construction has been appreciated and no allegation has been levelled against him during the period...Hence there is no question of his resignation," state RJD president Ramchandra Purbe told reporters after the JD(U) meeting.

Tejaswi, his father and mother Rabri Devi, named in the CBI FIR in the case related to three acres of land given to the family by a private party in return for licence given for hotels of IRCTC at Ranchi and Puri in 2006 when Lalu Prasad was the railway minister.

-ANI