Kushwaha set to exit oppn over leadership issue | Economic Times

NEW DELHI: After Hindustani Awam Morcha (HAM) leader Jitan Ram Manjhi moved away from the opposition alliance in Bihar, it is now the turn of RLSP leader Upendra Kushwaha. Unlike Manjhi, though, Kushwaha does not appear to be headed for the ruling alliance.On Thursday, Kushwaha called an urgent meeting of all party leaders in Patna and made it clear that leadership of RJD’s Tejashwi Yadav was not acceptable to him, indicating he was on his way out from the opposition alliance.“The leadership proposed by the RJD to fight with NDA cannot defeat Nitish Kumar and I can’t stand behind such leadership,” Kushwaha told party workers. “It’s not about seat-sharing. I am ready to fight on a few seats and would make my people understand this because it is for Bihar. But not with this leadership.”He told his party workers that if the RJD puts forward any other experienced leader to lead the opposition alliance, he can rethink. The party leaders authorised Kushwaha to take a decision on the future course of the party.“Our leader Kushwaha ji has said that we will offer a new alternative in Bihar. People are fed up with Nitish Kumar and don’t want to go for Tejashwi Yadav,” RLSP spokesman Mithislesh Kumar Singh told ET.Kushwaha may align with Pappu Yadav and Asaduddin Owaisi’s party along with a few other names in order to promote a third front in Bihar, according to people aware of the matter. He is not in discussions with the BJP or the JDU at the moment, they said.The RJD reacted strongly to the comments made by Kushwaha. “All the alliance partners who were part of the negotiations knew it very clearly that the question of leadership was non-negotiable,” senior RJD leader Manoj Jha told ET. “Kushwaha ji should find another reason if he has something else on his mind. You should have patience and faith. If you don’t have patience what could be said about it.”The real issue, though, was seat-sharing and not leadership, according to those in the know. ET had reported earlier that the RJD was not willing to concede more than 12 seats to RLSP and had communicated the same to the Congress.