Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh on Saturday said Mallikarjun Kharge made several attempts to speak with Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar, but as both of them are very busy, no conversation could be held between them. The comment comes as Nitish Kumar and his JD(U) are speculated to join the BJP, once again — in what is being seen as a major blow to the INDIA bloc ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

“Some statements are coming from Bihar that a new council of ministers will be formed there. Congress is sending former Chhattisgarh chief minister Bhupesh Baghel to Bihar as a senior observer. As far as I know, Baghel Ji will reach Patna tonight,” Jairam Ramesh said.

“I can tell you that Mallikarjun Kharge has tried to speak to Nitish Kumar several times. But both of them are busy. So they have not yet spoken. When Mallikarjun Kharge calls him, Nitish Kumar is busy. When Nitish Kumar calls Kharge ji, Kharge ji is in some meetings. Don’t twist my words. Nitish Kumar ji too called back,” Jairam said.

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“I would like to remind people that the first meeting of the Opposition leaders took place in Patna, on June 23, 2023. Bihar chief minister was the host of the meeting. The second meeting took place in Bengaluru where the bloc got its INDIA name. Nitish Kumar’s role in that meeting was very significant,” Jairam Ramesh said.

The Congress leader said he won’t comment on unverified reports but confirmed that Mallikarjun Kharge has tried to reach out to Nitish Kumar. “Strengthening the INDIA bloc is the responsibility of every party. And Congress is determined to work towards that. Akhilesh Yadav wrote that seat-sharing talks in Uttar Pradesh are progressing positively. On our part, Ashok Gehlot ji is handling the issue with Akhilesh Yadav,” Jairam Ramesh said.

‘INDIA national alliance, hot words exchanged at state-level every day’

Calling Nitish Kumar one of the architects of the INDIA bloc, Jairam Ramesh said INDIA is a national-level alliance. At the same time, hot words are exchanged at the state level every day. “One of the architects is Nitish Kumar, co-architects Mamata Banerjee. They know that this is a national alliance and local issues will not take precedence over national issues. Hot words are exchanged between the Congress and the Left every minute, yet the Left is part of INDIA bloc,” Jairam Ramesh said.

‘Optics could have been better, but we have hope in West Bengal and Bihar’

Before speculations over Nitish Kumar started, West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee announced that her party would go alone in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. Jairam Ramesh denied calling these an implosion of the INDIA bloc and said the alliance is only showing democratic credentials as people are expressing their views. “BJP is doing its best to ensure there are mini-implosions. But I would say there is hope in both Bihar and West Bengal. Yes, the optics could have been better; the situation could have been better. It’s not good for the image of INDIA bloc but I would say the situation is under control,” Jairam Ramesh said.