Bihar's BJP unit faction hits out at Nitish

Agitated over the criticism of Narendra Modi at a JD(U) meeting, a BJP faction from Bihar today met the party's top leadership to voice their grievances on the style of functioning of Chief Minister Nitish Kumar.

A group of leaders from the Bihar BJP unit met party president Rajnath Singh and apprised him of the differences with Kumar and coalition partner JD(U), which is known from its aversion to the Gujarat Chief Minister's perceived bid for prime ministership.

Among those who met Singh were former state unit chief C P Thakur, Health Minister Ashwani Choubey, Giriraj Singh and Chandramohan Rai.

The group, considered to be staunch supporters of Modi, strongly disapproved of the remarks made by Kumar at a JD(U) meeting yesterday asking BJP to name it's prime ministerial candidate for the general elections scheduled for next year.

The JD(U) had said that the PM candidate should have "secular credibility beyond doubt".

Hitting back at the JD(U), BJP spokesperson Nirmala Sitharaman had rejected all the "unfounded inferences" against Modi and refrain from "concentrating its energies" on criticising BJP Chief Ministers.

She had said that the BJP expected allies to keep their main focus on removing "non-performing and corrupt UPA led government".

It is learnt that the section of leaders from Bihar told the BJP President that the party was not growing in Bihar due to its alliance with the JD(U) and conveyed their opposition to continuance of ties with it.

"We have told our party president about all the issues. He has promised us that he will take an appropriate decision at an appropriate time," Giriraj Singh told reporters after the meeting at the BJP headquarters here.

Rajnath Singh is understood to have advised Bihar leaders against going to the media with their views.