Nitish slams Cong for putting special status issue on 'backburner'

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar today slammed Congress saying it has put the issue of special category status for Bihar on the "back burner" under the influence of its "natural ally". "Congress has put the issue of special category status for Bihar on the back burner under the influence of its natural ally. We will certainly raise the issue in 2014 Lok Sabha polls," Kumar told reporters at the airport on landing from New Delhi, in an apparent reference to RJD.

Amid reports of strain in the relationship between RJD and LJP in the process of pre-poll tie-up, Kumar said though there has not been any talks with the Ramvilas Paswan party for partnership (but) "politics is a game of possibilities".

The Centre had constituted a committee under Raghuram Rajan, now RBI Governor, to decide criteria for defining backwardness on economic considerations and it had given a report placing Bihar among least developed states category.

"The matter for grant of special category status was tipped to come up in the meeting of Finance Secretary which has been now put on hold, indicating a change of mind of Congress due to political considerations," Kumar said.

He made it clear that JD(U) did not have any "political issue" with Congress and their interactions recently were on the subject of granting special category status to Bihar.

The Bihar Chief Minister said during the coming Lok Sabha poll campaign, he would ask people to give a clear mandate so that the issue of special category status could be clinched once and for all. About a possible alliance between Congress and RJD, Kumar wondered if the two had not always been together.

"It was due to the graciousness of Congress that the great RJD leader had got front seat in Lok Sabha out of their quota. This unfortunately has now been over due to his conviction and subsequent disqualification from Parliament," he said, without naming Lalu Prasad.

Kumar said this alliance (of Congress and RJD) would not have much impact on people who cannot forget the experiences from 1989 to 2005.