: Opinion: Probability of Modi vs Nitish #IndiaNEWS #News By Arun Sinha Nitish Kumar’s exit from the NDA (National Democratic Alliance) and his reunion with the Mahagathbandhan (Grand Alliance) has

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Opinion: Probability of Modi vs Nitish #IndiaNEWS #News
By Arun Sinha
Nitish Kumar’s exit from the NDA (National Democratic Alliance) and his reunion with the Mahagathbandhan (Grand Alliance) has rekindled the hopes of the anti-BJP voters across the country who were wrestling with pessimism bred by the slow disintegration of the Congress and no signs of opposition unity. Alongside, it has also given rise to speculations over the probability of Nitish Kumar emerging as the opposition’s prime ministerial candidate against Narendra Modi in 2024.
Previous Tryst
This is the second time in his political career that Nitish Kumar is being seen as a probable opposition PM candidate. The first time was in the early 2010s. He had won a huge majority at the Assembly elections in 2010. He was then at the peak of his popularity across the nation as the man who rescued Bihar from the abyss of poverty and stagnation. He had also earned tremendous respect for openly opposing Modi and his brand of aggressive Hindutva despite being in alliance with the BJP. No wonder, in the build-up to the 2014 Lok Sabha poll he emerged as the strongest challenger to Modi in public perception.
But he did not actually get to be Modi’s challenger. For, after he walked out of the NDA following Modi’s nomination as the PM candidate by the BJP national executive in Goa in June 2013, the UPA (United Progressive Alliance) did not reach out to him with a proposal to include his party, the Janata Dal (United), into the alliance and to make him their PM nominee. Nor did he seek any alliance with the UPA. The result was that his fight against Modi in 2014 remained confined to Bihar. It was more a fight to stop Modi from seizing his political territory than a fight to stop him from becoming prime minister. And, fighting alone, he was battered miserably.
In Better Position Now
Today he is in a better position. He is a part of the Mahagathbandhan, an alliance whose significant part overlaps with the UPA’s. And not unsurprisingly, he is acceptable to the centre-left sections despite the fact that his pro-diversity image has been dented by his party’s support or lack of strong opposition to the Modi government’s laws on the status of Jammu & Kashmir and Citizenship (Amendment) Act.
One of the reasons could be his political credentials. He is seen as an incorruptible, thinking, decisive, bold and uncompromising politician. Modi is admired for the same qualities. So Nitish seems to fit the bill for a credible alternative to Modi.
Roadblocks on Way
However, there are many roadblocks on Nitish’s way to the opposition PM’s candidacy. First, Rahul Gandhi may be the topmost choice of the UPA. There are speculations that he might not accept it.

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