Patna: Telangana CM calls for 'BJP Mukt Bharat', shares stage with Nitish Kumar

PATNA: Telangana chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao during a trip to Patna as part of his ongoing efforts to create a united front of opposition parties called for a "BJP mukt Bharat" but steered clear from questions on whether his counterpart Nitish Kumar could be the opposition prime ministerial candidate.
"Nitish Kumar is among the senior-most and best leaders across the country. We will decide these things at a later stage," KCR said to questions on Nitish as PM candidate, but warmly referred to him as his "bade bhai" (elder brother). KCR, one of the most vocal regional leaders against the BJP, has been advocating a non-Congress, non-BJP Federal Front at the national level.
He met Bihar CM Nitish Kumar, deputy CM Tejashwi Prasad Yadav and also called on RJD president Lalu Prasad in the state capital.
Responding to queries in the presence of Nitish Kumar, KCR also avoided a direct reply on whether the Congress will be taken on board. "These issues will be decided in due course. We are not in hurry over such things," he said.
KCR blamed the Modi-led BJP government for the poor state of the Indian economy.
“Indian rupee has never depreciated so much. Why do farmers have to protest for over a year? The country faced losses in every sector due to the failures of the policies implemented by the Centre,” he said.
Rao also criticised the BJP’s mission of eliminating all opposition parties from the political arena. “It is a shame that the ruling party says that they will finish all other political parties," he said in reference to BJP president J P Nadda’s controversial statement given in Patna a few weeks ago.
Rao also flayed the Modi government for having brought in the “Agnipath” scheme without consulting any of the opposition parties, while calling Modi’s “Ab ki baar Trump Sarkaar” during a visit to the US many years ago, as a “diplomatic blunder”.
He also criticised the Modi government for turning down Bihar's very popular demand for ‘special’ category status. He said had Bihar been granted the status of a special state, it would have progressed at a faster pace on many fronts.
Earlier, KCR along with Nitish provided financial assistance to the families of five Indian soldiers from Bihar, who lost their lives in Galwan Valley and to the families of 12 Bihar migrant workers who died in a fire incident in Secunderabad in March this year.
KCR handed over cheques for Rs 10 lakh each to the next of kin of five soldiers from Bihar and cheques for Rs 5 lakh to the families of 12 Bihar workers killed in the fire accident in Hyderabad.
Lauding KCR for executing the grand drinking water project ‘Mission Bhagiratha’ in Telangana, Bihar CM Nitish Kumar on Wednesday attacked the Centre.
“I do not understand how people (BJP leaders) criticize a leader like KCR who executed big projects like Mission Bhagiratha. The leaders who do not want to do any development works and remain busy in the publicity works, criticize people like the Telangana CM,” Nitish added.