Nitish Kumar-led Janata Dal-United has made it clear that it will not support the Bharatiya Janata Party in elections in Manipur, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh. Speaking to reporters after party’s national executive meet in New Delhi, JD-U general secretary KC Tyagi said that Janata Dal (United) will contest the elections on its own in selected seats in the four states. “Some media reports say we are helping BJP but we are neither supporting them nor opposing them, we are not helping them,” Tyagi said. Tyagi also ruled out reports of his party being in talks with the Congress. “Until and unless Congress clears its stand on a corrupt party like RJD, we don’t know how to communicate with them any further,” Tyagi said.

After the meet, the JD-U leaders also said that the ruling NDA alliance in Bihar, which included BJP, will fight the 2019 Lok Sabha elections together and sweep it. “It will be decided later as to which party will contest on how many seats. The NDA will fight elections together and sweep the state,” its General Secretary Sanjay Kumar Jha told reporters.

Tyagi also told media that his party is in favour of conducting simultaneous elections. “We are in the favour of simultaneous elections but we don’t think it is easy to be conducted,” KC Tyagi said. “However we cannot oppose it as it is a step towards a less expensive election, curbing black money and better governance,” Tyagi added.

Further, the party vested entire power in the national president to take all the political decisions. “In the light of 2019 election all the power has been given to the National President to take political decisions,” JD(U) general secretary Sanjay Jha after party’s national executive meet. “It was also decided how will we go about in the upcoming election,” he added further.

Tyagi further stressed that Nitish Kumar-led faction of JD-U is the only original faction. “All these discussions on which faction of JD(U) is the original one and which is not must end. There is only one Janata Dal (United) which is led by Nitish Ji,” Tyagi said.

Earlier, there was speculation that the Kumar-led party may explore revival of its alliance with the RJD and the Congress.