In Patna, RJD president Lalu Prasad on Friday claimed that Narendra Modi's government at the Center was "weak" and could "fall" as soon as a month from now.
The comment was quickly dismissed by the BJP, which said the ailing septuagenarian was "hallucinating" and that the recent general elections were a reaffirmation of people's faith in Modi's leadership.
Prasad made these predictions at an event organized to commemorate 28 years of the formation of his party, which he founded by splitting the Janata Dal.
Prasad, who spoke in a weak voice for less than 10 minutes, with his younger son and heir apparent, Tejashwi Yadav, at his side, said, "The Modi government is weak (kamzor). It can fall at any time. It can fall in August".
He urged party workers to be prepared for such a scenario. He highlighted that in the recent Lok Sabha elections, the RJD had increased its number of seats and vote share compared to five years ago.
"For quite some time, we have been the largest party in the Bihar assembly. Unlike many others, we have never compromised on ideology," said Prasad, a staunch opponent of the BJP, recalling his tenure and achievements, including the arrest of Lal Krishna Advani in 1990.
Prasad made the remark at a time when most of the NDA leaders were at a BJP function where newly inducted Union ministers from Bihar were felicitated.
Reacting to Prasad's remarks later, Union Minister Nityanand Rai, former Bihar BJP president, accused the RJD supremo of hallucinating, using a colloquial Hindi phrase "Mungeri Lal ke hasin sapne".
"People have voted for Modi, who is now serving a record third term. Under his leadership and guided by Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, the NDA in Bihar will continue to defeat the opposition, which fell out of favor during the RJD government," he said Rai.
However, sources in both RJD and NDA, who spoke on condition of anonymity, were unanimous in the view that Prasad had cleverly attempted to fish in troubled waters.
In the Lok Sabha polls, the BJP fell short of a majority and a new government was formed with the help of allies like JD(U), led by Nitish Kumar, who has been in and out of the NDA more than once in the last decade. .
Prasad's long-time rival Kumar has recently emphasized his commitment to stability and unity within the BJP-led NDA, which also includes Chirag Paswan, Jitan Ram Manjhi and Upendra Kushwaha, who have had disagreements with the JD(U). ) leader.
The comment was quickly dismissed by the BJP, which said the ailing septuagenarian was "hallucinating" and that the recent general elections were a reaffirmation of people's faith in Modi's leadership.
Prasad made these predictions at an event organized to commemorate 28 years of the formation of his party, which he founded by splitting the Janata Dal.
Prasad, who spoke in a weak voice for less than 10 minutes, with his younger son and heir apparent, Tejashwi Yadav, at his side, said, "The Modi government is weak (kamzor). It can fall at any time. It can fall in August".
He urged party workers to be prepared for such a scenario. He highlighted that in the recent Lok Sabha elections, the RJD had increased its number of seats and vote share compared to five years ago.
"For quite some time, we have been the largest party in the Bihar assembly. Unlike many others, we have never compromised on ideology," said Prasad, a staunch opponent of the BJP, recalling his tenure and achievements, including the arrest of Lal Krishna Advani in 1990.
Prasad made the remark at a time when most of the NDA leaders were at a BJP function where newly inducted Union ministers from Bihar were felicitated.
Reacting to Prasad's remarks later, Union Minister Nityanand Rai, former Bihar BJP president, accused the RJD supremo of hallucinating, using a colloquial Hindi phrase "Mungeri Lal ke hasin sapne".
"People have voted for Modi, who is now serving a record third term. Under his leadership and guided by Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, the NDA in Bihar will continue to defeat the opposition, which fell out of favor during the RJD government," he said Rai.
However, sources in both RJD and NDA, who spoke on condition of anonymity, were unanimous in the view that Prasad had cleverly attempted to fish in troubled waters.
In the Lok Sabha polls, the BJP fell short of a majority and a new government was formed with the help of allies like JD(U), led by Nitish Kumar, who has been in and out of the NDA more than once in the last decade. .
Prasad's long-time rival Kumar has recently emphasized his commitment to stability and unity within the BJP-led NDA, which also includes Chirag Paswan, Jitan Ram Manjhi and Upendra Kushwaha, who have had disagreements with the JD(U). ) leader.