Patna,(BiharTimes): Former chief minister and leader of the Hindustani Awam Morcha, Jitan Ram Manjhi, on Wednesday contradicted the statement of his own party’s state president.
Talking to the media after a day-long meeting of the HAM he said that it would be wrong to say that Muslims do not vote the party which forges alliance with the BJP. He said Nitish Kumar’s Janata Dal (United) was in alliance with the Bharatiya Janata Party yet it continued to get votes of Muslims.
However, he conceded that some of the statements made on the run-up to the Assembly election did drive Muslim votes away from the NDA yet it would be wrong to take out a different meaning.
Without taking state HAM chief Brishen Patel’s name he said that an attempt is being made to interpret it differently.
“Several Dalit activists too came to me to suggest that had I not been in alliance with the BJP we would have supported you. But this is not true,” the former chief minister said while ruling out any break in alliance with the BJP.
He strongly denied that he met RJD chief Lalu Prasad after the election debacle. “Yes I congratulated him over phone after the election victory of the grand alliance. But it is blatant lie, not just hundred per cent but one thousand per cent that he met Lalu Prasad,” he said emphatically.
Two statements within a few hours from the HAM leaders clearly indicated that things are not well within the party. Manjhi appears to be getting marginalized within his own party.
The trouble within the HAM has given an ample opportunity to the JD(U) to tease Brishen Patel that after election everyone becomes wise.
State RJD president Ramchandra Purvey said that not only Muslims, but all secular-minded people of the state voted for the grand alliance and ensured its victory.
For the worried BJP the news has come at the worst of the time as the party has suspended one of its MPs, Kirti Azad, on Wednesday. He represents Darbhanga parliamentary seat in the Lok Sabha and enjoys the backing of several senior saffron party leaders, including Shatrughan Sinha.