The Hindu : National : Sharad Yadav regrets mistake

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National

Sharad Yadav regrets mistake

Special Correspondent

Sharad Yadav

NEW DELHI: President of the Janata Dal (United) Sharad Yadav on Thursday regretted the “mistake” made by his Karnataka State unit on the basis of which Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar had informed BJP leaders Rajnath Singh and L. K. Advani that his party candidates had come second in several constituencies although none secured a seat in the polls.

The “mistake” had caused some misunderstanding between the two parties, which run a coalition government in Bihar.

Mr. Yadav told The Hindu that C. K. G. Reddy, a party leader in Karnataka, who had given the “wrong information,” had been asked for an explanation, while the party’s State unit president Som Shekhar had submitted his resignation to him following the party’s debacle. The JD (U) had contested 71 seats but failed to win even one.

The “wrong information” was the basis for talks between the two senior BJP leaders and Mr. Yadav and Mr. Kumar a few days ago. Following this, BJP general secretary Arun Jaitley had politely told Mr. Kumar that the figures quoted by him were incorrect.

Clearing the air

Mr. Yadav admitted on Thursday that he and Mr. Kumar had been misled by their Karnataka unit. “I regret my mistake. I want to clear the air,” he added.

As for the BJP’s own problems of dissidence in Bihar, most of the legislators headed back to Patna on Thursday after party leaders told them that they would be able to deal with Bihar affairs after government formation in Karnataka and the two-day national executive committee meeting here on June 1 and 2. They are expected to be back here on June 3.

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