RJD president Lalu Prasad on Saturday hit out at Home Minister Amit Shah over his attack on Bihar's ruling alliance and stressed the need for Opposition unity, a day before he meets Congress leader Sonia Gandhi along with Chief Minister Nitish Kumar.
"Amit Shah has totally gone crazy. His government has been removed there (Bihar). It (BJP) will face a rout in 2024 as well. That is why he is going there running and speaking of jungle raaj and all those things. What did he do when he was in Gujarat," Mr. Prasad told reporters.
"Jungle raaj was in Gujarat when he was there," the former Bihar chief minister alleged.
"Amit Shah bilkul paglaye hue hain," he said, speaking in Hindi.
Asked about the Home Minister's claim that the BJP will form the government at the Centre in 2024 again and then in Bihar the next year, he said, "We will see that." With the BJP saying that Mr. Kumar will dump the RJD later in his pursuit of power, Mr. Prasad asserted they are together now.
Mr. Kumar and Mr. Prasad are likely to meet Congress president Sonia Gandhi on Sunday evening.
"We are making every effort for Opposition unity," Mr. Prasad, who has been battling poor health, said, adding this will the agenda of their meeting.
Mr. Shah on Friday flayed former ally Nitish Kumar, accusing the Bihar Chief Minister of backstabbing the BJP and trying to fulfil his prime ministerial ambitions while "sitting in the laps of Congress and RJD".
At a rally held in Purnea, Mr. Shah asserted the jodi of Mr. Kumar and RJD president Lalu Prasad will be wiped out ( soopda saaf') in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls and, a year later, the BJP will win a majority on its own in the State Assembly elections.
Bihar does not want the grand alliance's "jungle raaj", he had said.
