RLSP chief bats for consensus seat-sharing with BJP

Rashtriya Lok Samta Party (RLSP) president and Union Minister of State Upendra Kushwaha on Saturday asked the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to go for a consensus seat sharing agreement in Bihar for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections.

RLSP chief, while addressing a press conference after the state executive meeting of the party here, said that he would wait till November 30 for the decision on the seats. He said, "I will not initiate talks with any leader of the BJP except Prime Minister Narendra Modi."

He said the party was dissatisfied with the number of seats being offered to him by the BJP. "The BJP may have to pay a heavy price if the consensus on seat sharing is not reached in the state," he said.

Kushwaha also lashed out at JD-U chief and Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar for his recent remarks about him. "The party will organize 'Upper Caste-Lower Caste Virodh Diwas' on November 28 across the state," he said. He said that his party would also launch a programme on November 28 to bring up educational reforms in the state.

An internal feud within RLSP came to the fore on Saturday as the party legislators Sudhanshu Shekhar and Lallan Pawan were absent from the state executive meeting.