Patna,(BiharTimes): An overwhelming number of Congress leaders as well as rank and file want the party to enter into an alliance with the Rashtriya Janata Dal rather than with the ruling Janata Dal (United), on the plea that the latter is rapidly losing its support base.

 The party’s central and state leaders appear to be unanimous that Lalu Yadav and not Nitish Kumar would be the best person to stall the challenge posed by Narendra Modi. Most leaders feel that the Bihar chief minister has lost his credibility and can not be trusted at all as he had a very long association with the same saffron brigade. He is today blaming the same Narendra Modi, whom he had been publicly supporting very strongly till a few years back.

 Media reports from New Delhi quoting party insiders said that over 80 per cent of party strategists feel the Congress should strengthen Lalu’s hands irrespective of the stigma attached to him after his conviction in the fodder scam. They are convinced that the Congress-RJD-LJP combine would emerge as the frontrunner, winning over 20 of the 40 seats in the state.

 In the process the JD(U) is most likely to be virtually decimated. Most observers hold none else but Nitish Kumar directly responsible for such a sharp decline of the party. There is near unanimity among the analysts that it is Nitish alone who has made Narendra Modi an important force in the state. Till a few months back he was hardly known to the masses in the interior of the state.

 The Congress is weighing the prospect on the feedback, which it is receiving from the state. While sympathy factor has boosted the prospect of Lalu the acquittal of all the 26 accused in the Lakshmanpur-Bathe carnage by the Patna high court only made the case of RJD further strong. RJD is finding it very easy to convey this message of discrimination among the backwards and mahadalits.

 On the other hand Muslims who were divided till a few months back are now almost unanimous that Nitish Kumar has betrayed and befooled them. The manner in which he has been handling Narendra Modi has only backfired as today hardly anyone is prepared to accept his version. In the recent weeks Muslim leaders of Janata Dal (United) has started keeping a low profile and are not stoutly defending the chief minister.

 The Congress wants to cash in on these factors and join hands with Lalu’s RJD with Ram Vilas Paswan’s LJP a junior partner.

 The Congress leaders are of the view that if this alliance does not materialise the BJP will then emerge as the strongest party after the Lok Sabha election.

 Party insiders are of the view that earlier Rahul Gandhi and some state leaders were inclined towards Nitish, but the sudden resurgence of RJD has not only compelled them to re-think, but alarmed the BJP think-tank too. Now the saffron brigade has started realizing that they have overplayed the Narendra Modi card and that too much ahead of the parliamentary election.