Not personal, but ideological feud with Samrat Choudhary: Prashant Kishor

Patna: Jan Suraaj founder and Bankipur MLA Prashant Kishor on Saturday clarified that he has no "personal feud" with Bihar Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary, asserting that his differences with him are ideological and revolve around the development of the state.

Kishor's remarks came days after he and Choudhary met at a social gathering earlier this week. The meeting took place during the Brahmbhoj ceremony, the final-day ritual following the death of senior BJP leader and former Rajya Sabha member R.K. Sinha, who passed away on October 30 after a prolonged illness.

Sinha's son and BJP national Secretary, Rituraj Sinha, escorted Kishor to meet Choudhary, who arrived at the venue shortly after him.

Speaking to IANS on Saturday, Kishor said that meeting someone in public or social life was part of Bihar's cultural traditions and should not be viewed as a sign of personal reconciliation or a change in political differences.

"This is Bihar's culture. And in our own culture, in public life or in any aspect of social life, when you meet someone, there is no personal fight, no personal feud. The feud is ideological; the feud is regarding the development of Bihar. Personally, I have neither any association with Samrat Choudhary nor any love, nor any feud with him," he said.

Earlier on Friday, Kishor had also emphasised that social and political etiquette must be maintained whenever people meet, but such interactions should not be interpreted as a shift in their respective political positions.

"Our culture teaches us to maintain social and political etiquette when we meet someone. My meeting with Samrat Choudhary will not turn someone who failed Class 7 into a PhD holder. I have previously described him as a criminal. Just because I met him once does not mean I will start portraying him as a saint or sage," Kishor had said.

Meanwhile, Choudhary on Friday announced that the six-lane Kachchi Dargah-Bidupur bridge over the Ganga River would be named 'Nitish Setu' in honour of former Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar.

Reacting to the announcement, Kishor told IANS that the construction of the bridge was more important than the name it carried. The bridge connects to Raghopur, the Assembly constituency represented by Tejashwi Yadav.

"It's good; a bridge should be built. Whosoever's name it is built under, as long as a bridge is built, that is good," the Jan Suraaj founder said.

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