With the Opposition alliance — Indian National Developmental, Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) taking shape, the Janata Dal(U), on Thursday again pushed for the candidature of Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar from any constituency in Uttar Pradesh. They want him to contest from any seat with a sizeable Kurmi population in the 2024 Lok Sabha election.
Speaking with The Hindu, JD(U) in-charge of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar Rural Development Minister Shrawon Kumar on Thursday said the party workers in the State and common people want Mr. Nitish to fight from one seat of Uttar Pradesh like Phulpur, Pratapgarh, Ambedkar Nagar or Mirzapur to send a message across the Hindi Heartland in 2024.
It is interesting to note all these seats have a high number of Kurmi electorate. The Bihar Chief Minister belongs to the Kurmi caste.
Not only our State unit but the common people of Uttar Pradesh, whom we met want NitishJi to contest from any seat in Uttar Pradesh. They are demanding his candidature from Phulpur, Mirzapur, Ambedkar Nagar etc, said Mr. Kumar, a close aide of the Bihar Chief Minister.
The JD(U) Uttar Pradesh in-charge added the development model of Mr. Nitish is widely discussed in the State among the marginalised sections like OBCs and Scheduled Castes communities.
The Samajwadi Party (SP), principal Opposition party in Uttar Pradesh and a part of INDIA alliance said that any decision about Mr. Kumar contesting from the State will be made after consultations with the SP leadership.
“Decisions regarding U.P. will be taken by the SP and our leader AkhileshJi, after due consultation with INDIA parties. Till now, their are no deliberations over NitishJi’s candidature,” said Sunil Singh Yadav, SP National Spokesperson to The Hindu.
Proponents of the idea say that being a Kurmi, Mr. Kumar would be instrumental in bringing a chunk of the votes in favour of the Opposition alliance in the State. Kurmis, an influential OBC caste group have sizeable presence in at least 10 Lok Sabha seats in Eastern and Central Uttar Pradesh.
