JD(U) to support Arvind Kejriwal in Varanasi

Patna: Janata Dal (United) has decided to support Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) candidate Arvind Kejriwal in the elections from the high profile Varanasi seat in Uttar Pradesh where BJP`s Prime Ministerial candidate Narendra Modi is in the fray.

JD(U) is opposed to both Congress and BJP, hence would support Arvind Kejriwal in Varanasi and a decision regarding it has been taken in the party, JD(U) spokesman Rajeev Ranjan Prasad told PTI today.
Prasad said JD(U) has been playing a prominent role in bringing together non-BJP, non-Congress parties on a single platform to fight corruption and strengthen secularism.
Another party spokesman Neeraj Kumar said the Varanasi JD(U) unit came out with a proposal to support the AAP leader to which the national leadership endorsed.
JD(U) president Sharad Yadav and general secretary K C Tyagi would campaign in favour of Kejriwal at Varanasi, he said.
Since Kejriwal has shown the guts to fight communal forces, JD(U) took a stand to support him from the high profile seat, Kumar added.
Varanasi will witness a contest between BJP`s Narendra Modi, AAP`s Arvind Kejriwal and Ajay Rai of Congress.
JD(U) said that the decision has been taken to stop "divisive forces" of the society from grabbing power in the country and maintain secular culture of the nation.
"To stop divisive forces of society from grabbing the power in the country and to maintain the secular culture of the nation, the JD(U) leadership has decided to support AAP convenor Arvind Kejriwal in Benaras," party spokesperon K C Tyagi said in a statement.
The statement said that the decision was taken after discussions between party leaders Sharad Yadav and Nitish Kumar.
All senior JD(U) leaders will conduct public meetings, rallies and road shows to support Kejriwal, who the party maintained is "fighting a selfless battle for Varanasi for the nation".
Tyagi further said that Kejriwal along with his team visited Gujarat to understand Modi`s "much-hyped" Gujarat model of development and brought out the true story.
"Arvind Kejriwal alongwith his team visited Gujarat to understand Narendra Modi`s much hyped Gujarat model of development and he was able to bring the actual story in front of the nation which no media or other political parties could do," Tyagi said in the statement.
JD(U) had walked out of NDA breaking its 17-year-old relationship with BJP in protest against Narendra Modi`s elevation as the campaign committee chief of his party. Senior JD(U) leader Nitish Kumar and Modi had sparred in the past as well and the relationship between the two party touched a new low after Modi was made the campaign chief. The rivalry between the two parties got all the more bitter after the Gujarat chief minister was made the BJP`s PM candidate.