Patna: A day after former Union minister R.C.P. Singh announced his resignation from the party, the JD(U) on Sunday said that it would not join the Union Council of Ministers.
JD(U) president Rajiv Ranjan Singh told the media here, “The party had decided not to join the Union Cabinet in 2019 after the Lok Sabha elections. There is no change in our stand.”
He added that the decision will not affect the alliance in Bihar. He dismissed speculation of a rift, including over Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar skipping the meeting of Niti Aayog chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday. The party cited the Chief Minister's “health issue” as the reason for skipping the meeting.
The JD(U) president said that Singh’s exit from the party was on expected lines as “his body was here but his soul was somewhere else.”
Singh had announced his resignation from the JD(U) after the party sought an explanation from him over discrepancies in immovable properties and allegations of corruption levelled by some workers. “They cannot prove anything against me or my family,” Singh said after he announced his resignation.
Singh who was sent to the Rajya Sabha twice earlier and served as JD(U) president had to give up his Cabinet berth after the party denied him a ticket for the third term. Notably, the notice was served to Singh a few days after his supporters raised slogans projecting him as the future Chief Minister.
