New Delhi/IBNS: In a virtual meeting of the INDIA alliance on Saturday, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar proposed the name of Rahul Gandhi as the chairperson of the bloc but the Congress MP declined it, media reports said.
Meanwhile, when Nitish Kumars name was proposed for the post of convenor, the Bihar CM said his colleague from Bihar, Lalu Yadav, would be a better choice as he is more senior.
The convenor is a separate post in the alliance, just below that of the chairperson.
According to an NDTV report, when the discussion on the chairperson for the 28-party alliance began, the Janata Dal (United) chief proposed the name of Rahul Gandhi, who declined, saying he was working at the grassroots level and that his Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra would begin on Sunday.
The Congress leader proposed party chief Mallikarjun Kharges name for the alliances top job, which was endorsed by Sonia Gandhi.
CPM General Secretary Sitaram Yechury then proposed Nitish Kumars name for the post of convenor, which the Bihar chief minister was reportedly upset about not getting.
However, when Kumar said RJD chief Lalu Yadav would be a better pick, the RJD leader said no.
At this juncture, Rahul Gandhi brought up Kumars name again and – on finding support from some other parties – pointed out that Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had some objections and that discussions would be needed.
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and some Congress leaders have been deputed to speak to Banerjee, who skipped the meeting, to resolve the issue.
Apart from the Trinamool Congress chief, other key allies like Samajwadi Party President Akhilesh Yadav and Uddhav Thackeray of the Shiv Sena (UBT) also gave the virtual gathering a miss.
