Senior BJP leader and former Union Minister Sanjay Paswan said on Monday that Nitish Kumar has held the post of Chief Minister for a long time.
"Even as his tenure witnessed lots of development in Bihar and also improved the law and order situation, he should now vacate the chair for a 'second-line leader' of BJP or JD-U and take an active role in the Centre's politics", he said here.
"Nitish Kumar is a tall leader... but the people of Bihar now want to see change. Therefore, I believe he should head to central politics and take charge of as a Minister of an important department," Paswan added.
Paswan's statement has not gone down well with the JD-U.
Senior party leader and Bihar Minister Shyam Rajak said the national leaders of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) have said on many occasions that Nitish Kumar will be the face of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) in the next year's assembly elections.
"Hence, there is no justification for such statements," he said.
JD-U spokesperson Nikhil Mandal has said Nitish Kumar would be the party's chief ministerial candidate for the next election.
"Nitish Kumar has got the blessings of the entire state," he said.
( With inputs from IANS )