Nitish Kumar rules out quitting NDA, recalls ties with Ex-PM Vajpayee

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Monday ruled out the possibility of quitting the NDA, pointing out that his ties with the BJP went back a long way.

The JD(U) supremo, who termed as a "mistake" his two short-lived alliances with the RJD-Congress combine, fondly recalled the backing he had always received from former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee.

"It was respected Atal ji who made me a Union minister. He used to shower so much of affection on me. I never faced any difficulty in getting my proposals cleared, Kumar told reporters in Vaishali district, which he toured as part of the state-wide Pragati Yatra'.

The longest-serving chief minister of the state also recalled that it was Vajpayee's wish that "I become the CM" when the NDA first won assembly polls in Bihar in 2005.

"So, why would I not stay (with the BJP)? A couple of times the people in my party committed a mistake (by pressing for an alliance with the Congress-RJD combine). I rectified it both times, said the JD(U) president.

Kumar was responding to queries about speculations in the political circles, triggered by Union Home Minister Amit Shah's equivocal stance on his projection as chief ministerial candidate in the assembly polls due in less than a year.

The speculations grew stronger after RJD president Lalu Prasad recently said he was keeping his "doors open" for arch-rival Kumar.