Former JD(U) chief Sharad Yadav dares Nitish Kumar to sack him; calls Oppn meet on Aug 17

Patna: Days after he was removed as the Janata Dal (United) leader in the Rajya Sabha, Sharad Yadav on Wednesday challenged Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar to sack him from the party, said .GoNews

The former JD(U) president has called a meeting of opposition parties, including the Congress and the Left, on Thursday where he will decide the future course of action. Top leaders of the Congress, the Left, Samajwadi Party, BSP, TMC and other parties opposed to the BJP have been invited to the programme which is being seen as Sharad's show of strength against his party chief Nitish Kumar's decision to ally with the BJP.

Asked who would attend the meeting, Sharad says, "There would be hardly anybody from the opposition who will not come". When asked if Nitish Kumar would also participate in the conference, Yadav said, "he has invited everyone to the programme".

However, he refused to answer questions on his disapproval of Nitish's alliance with the BJP, and said the decision to hold tomorrow's event was taken weeks ago, when his party was with the loose opposition group.

"The Sajha Virasat Bachao Sammelan is not against anybody but in the interest of the country. This is in the interest of 125 crore people of the country," the former JD(U) said.

He cited incidents such as the suicide of Rohith Vemula and the disappearance of JNU student Najeeb Ahmed, besides suicides of farmers across the country, to suggest that the situation was tough for underprivileged people.

The JD(U), which has asked Yadav not to hold the event, removed him as its parliamentary party leader in the Rajya Sabha when he continued with his campaign against the alliance with the BJP. 

Yadav was accompanied by Ali Anwar Ansari, a Rajya Sabha member suspended from the parliamentary party by the JD(U), and Arun Shrivastava, recently sacked from the post of general secretary.