Exclusive: "Nitish Kumar Not Mentally, Physically Fit": Prashant Kishor Doubles Down

Election strategist-turned-politician Prashant Kishor has doubled down on his charge that Nitish Kumar is not mentally and physically fit to continue as the Chief Minister, even as the JDU leader appears ready to govern Bihar for five more years.

"I have no hesitation to say that Nitish Kumar ji is not mentally and physically well," Kishor remarked on Walk the Talk with NDTV Editor-in-Chief Rahul Kanwal.

Nitish Kumar, 74, will take oath as the Chief Minister of Bihar for the 10th time tomorrow.

Kishor's Jan Suraaj Party (JSP) ran an unsuccessful solo contest in the recent Bihar elections and failed to open its account in debut. But the JSP chief remained defiant and repeated his charge, asserting that he would not take his words back.

Asked about such an attack on an elderly man's health, he shot back, "How do you know? I don't have any lens to establish this." "It's not about being older or younger. If you are a chief minister who doesn't appear mentally and physically fit, I would say so. Whether it backfires or not, I am not taking my words back," said Kishor.

Such remarks may evoke sympathy for Kumar but don't determine an election result, he claimed, alleging that the election was contested not by Nitish Kumar's party but the government machinery.

"Give me Rs 100 crore for an assembly election. You keep the sympathy and strategy. I can still win by buying votes...the government contested the election. The election was fought with government funds. Don't generalize it as if everything is hunky-dory in Bihar. Just because you won doesn't mean everything you're doing is right," he said.

Kishor had attacked the JDU leader over his health during the run-up to the election in Bihar, urging people to look beyond him since he is old and unable to run Bihar.

A video of Kumar last month drew attention to his unusual gesture, with rival politicians claiming that he no longer has the ability to run his government. Kumar was seen in the video sitting with hands folded and looking sideways and smiling.

RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav called it an "erratic behaviour" and alleged that the Chief Minister has been behaving in a way that shows "he is not in the proper state of mind."