Modi as PM candidate hypothetical: Nitish Kumar

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Distancing himself from BJP's victory in Gujarat, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar has sought to suggest that he does not see Narendra Modi as a Prime Ministerial candidate.

"BJP has decided to project L K Advani as the next Prime Ministerial candidate and he is acceptable to all parties in the NDA. I don't think beyond that as Modi becoming candidate for PM's job is a hypothetical question," he said.

In an interview, Kumar disassociated his party JD (U), a key NDA ally, with Modi's victory in Gujarat.

"The JD (U) has nothing to do with BJP or Modi's victory in Gujarat assembly elections as we contested separately.

"Moreover, NDA Chairman A B Vajpayee and BJP have made it clear that L K Advani will be the party's candidate for Prime Ministerial candidate in the next poll," he said when asked if Modi would be acceptable to JD (U) as future Prime Minister.

"If you (the media) want to raise an issue within BJP over Modi as prime ministerial candidate, you are free (to do so)," he added.

Asked to compare the tenure of Manmohan Singh and Vajpayee as Prime Minister, he said, while the BJP patriarch was a mass leader, this was not the case with Singh.

"While nobody disputes Singh's ability as Prime Minister, one has to acknowledge that he is not even the leader of the party to which he belongs. The ruling alliance is a two-faced entity-- Singh heads the government and Sonia the alliance," he said.

Kumar rejected Modi's criticism of Centre's 15-point programme for economic development of minorities as "communal budgeting". "It is not communal but social budgeting," he said.

Modi had at the December 19 meeting of the National Development Council triggered a controversy when he alleged the UPA government was resorting to "communal budgeting" by earmarking special funds for minorities.

"The Constitution provides for preferential treatment to socially and educationally backward sections of society .... why only Muslims, deprived sections like Dalits, Scheduled Tribes and women all qualify for preferential treatment as they have been left out of the development process for ages," he said.

Mushars, for example, are the most backward among the dalits with just six per cent literacy, he contended.

"The 'Maha Dalit' Commission constituted by me has recommended special measures for them and we will implement those. We cannot call this caste or communal budgeting but social budgeting," he said.