Personal opinions don't amount to a division in JD(U), says close aid of Nitish

Patna: A close aide of Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Wednesday asserted that the JD(U)s support to Citizenship (Amendment) Bill in Parliament was the partys official line and voices of dissent from some top office- bearers were their "personal opinions".

Sanjay Jha, a state minister and JD(U) national general secretary known for his proximity to the chief minister who is the national president dismissed reports that disapproval of the partys stand in the Parliament by national vice- president Prashant Kishor and another national general secretary Pavan Varma was tantamount to a division in the party on the issue.

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"The partys official line is clear. And it is there for all to see in the ongoing session of the Parliament. A leader or two may express a personal opinion but such isolated cases must not be construed as a division within the party on the issue", Jha said here.

While Kishor had expressed his disappointment at the partys decision to support CAB, holding the legislation to be against the JD(U)s commitment to secularism and Gandhian ideals, Varma had urged Kumar to reconsider the party stand after MPs voted in favour of the Bill in the Lok Sabha and before it was taken up in the Rajya Sabha.

JD(U), a BJP ally, has 16 members in the Lower house of Parliament and six in the Upper house.

The party's support to the contentious CAB Bill had given an opportunity to political rivals- RJD and Congress- to attack JD(U), which enjoys support among minority Muslims.

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(PTI)