RJD leader claims 17 MLAs of JDU in touch with party; Bihar CM Nitish Kumar terms it 'totally baseless'

Patna (Bihar) [India], December 30 (ANI): Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Wednesday dismissed as "totally baseless" the claim by opposition Rashtriya Janata Dal leader Shyam Rajak who said that 17 MLAs of ruling Janata Dal (United) or JD(U) are in touch with the RJD and more will cross over very soon.
While talking to ANI, Rajak, who joined the RJD before the Assembly elections said that the defection of the MLAs has been put on hold since the RJD hoped that more would like to follow suit.
"A total of 17 JD(U) MLAs are in touch with us and they are ready to join our party any time. Since we do not want to violate anti-defection law, we have told them that we will welcome them only when they come in a group of 28 MLAs. Their strength will grow to 28 very soon," Rajak told ANI.
Responding to allegations and claims of Rajak, Bihar CM and JD(U) leader Nitish Kumar said, "These kind of claims are totally baseless. People are making all kinds of claims. There is no substance to what he is saying."
Rajak was the JD(U)'s deputy leader in the previous Assembly. He was a former national general secretary of the JD(U) before switching over to the RJD.
"Tejashwi Yadav will become the chief minister of Bihar. The mandate was for Tejashwi Yadav but BJP and JDU used administration to hijack democracy," he added.
Rajak further said that JDU workers are feeling that their ally BJP will overpower them and they are disturbed over the development in Bihar in which six of the seven JDU MLAs joined BJP.
"BJP finished JDU from Arunachal Pradesh by inducting its six MLAs. Many JDU MLAs are disturbed due to this development. JDU MLAs are feeling that BJP is overpowering them in Bihar," Rajak said.
On Tuesday, Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader Uday Narayan Choudhary appealed to Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar to leave the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), and join Mahagathbandhan and make Tejashwi Yadav the Chief Minister.
During the JD(U)'s national executive meeting on Sunday, Nitish Kumar had said that he had no desire to become the Chief Minister and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) could make its own Chief Minister.
"I had no desire to become the Chief Minister. I had said that the public had given its mandate and anyone can be made the Chief Minister, BJP could make its own Chief Minister," Kumar had stated.
The NDA had secured a 125-seat majority in the 243-seat Bihar Legislative Assembly in November. The BJP secured 74 seats, JD(U) 43 while eight seats were won by two other NDA constituents. (ANI)