Nitish Kumar not to campaign in Mokama, Gopalganj bypolls

Patna, Oct 27 (IANS) Bihar CM Nitish Kumar on Thursday said that he will not campaign in Mokama and Gopalganj Assembly constituencies for the November 3 bypolls.

“I have an injury in my stomach due to a boat accident in the Ganga river a few days ago and I am not fully fit. Once I recover from the wound, then I will think about it. For now, I am not going to these two places. The leaders of our party are going to Mokama and Gopalganj,” he said as he went to attend Chitragupta Puja in Gardanibagh locality here.

Earlier, Nitish Kumar announced he would go to Mokama and Gopailganj along with Tejashwi Yadav and Jitan Ram Manjhi for the election campaign in favour of the grand alliance candidates on October 27.

“At present, the wound is such that I am not sitting on the front seat of the car as it requires wearing a seat belt. I am travelling while sitting in the rear seat,” he said.

The voting in bypolls for Mokama and Gopalganj Assembly constituencies will be held on November 3 and RJD’s Neelam Devi, who is wife of Bahubali leader Anant Singh, and Mohan Prasad Gupta, are the candidates for the grand alliance.

As the RJD did not give these two seats to the JD-U, sources have said that the chances of RJD candidates are grim, especially in Gopalganj.

The political relation between Nitish Kumar and Anant Singh, the sitting MLA, whose conviction and sentencing in an arms case, necessitated the bypoll, is also said to be sour.

–IANS
ajk/vd