"Hope Nitish, Naidu uphold values which they stood by...": Kapil Sibal

NEW DELHI: With the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) falling short of the majority mark in the Lok Sabha polls, Janata Dal-United (JDU) Chief Nitish Kumar and Telugu Desam Party (TDP) Chief Chandrababu Naidu have emerged as potential "kingmakers". On Wednesday, Rajya Sabha MP Kapil Sibal stated that he hoped the two leaders upheld values that they stood by when they were Chief Ministers.

"Nitish Kumar and Chandrababu Naidu have always maintained the federal structure... A few years ago, Naidu Ji said that a dictatorial government cannot run. And whatever the ED and CBI are doing without the consent of the states, is not acceptable", Sibal said while addressing the media here in the national capital.

"I salute them for upholding those values and I hope that they uphold the values that they stood by when they were chief ministers..." he added. The counting of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections was held on Tuesday. According to the Election Commission of India, BJP won 240 seats, much lower than its 2019 tally of 303.

The Congress, on the other hand, registered a strong growth winning 99 seats. The INDIA bloc crossed the 230 mark, posing stiff competition, and defying all predictions.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has secured a third term, but the BJP will need the support of other parties in his coalition primarily -- JD (U) chief Nitish Kumar and TDP chief Chandrababu Naidu. In Bihar, the JDU secured 12 seats while Naidu's TDP won 16 seats in the Andhra Pradesh Lok Sabha polls.

Meanwhile, the TDP Chief has extended support to the BJP and affirmed that he is "a part of NDA". "I have seen so many political changes in the country. I am in NDA. I am going to the NDA meeting. If there is anything else, we will report to you," Naidu said, extending his support to the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) while addressing a Press conference in Vijaywada.

JDU Chief Nitish Kumar who coincidentally was on the same flight to Delhi as RJD's Tejashwi Yadav is also expected to submit a letter of support to the BJP later on Wednesday. Earlier this year, Kumar jumped ship to the BJP-led NDA owing to disagreements with the RJD, which led to the collapse of the government in Bihar.