Patna: In a seemingly subtle hint to their allies, senior Congress leader and Opposition leader in the Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad said that the party would not make it an issue if the Prime Minister’s post is not offered to them.

“We will not make it an issue by saying that we will not let any other leader become the PM if the post is not offered to us,” Azad told reporters here, backing down from his demand that Gandhi must become the Prime Minister.

Despite AICC chief Rahul Gandhi showing little interest in the Prime Ministerial post, the party has, so far, repeatedly positioned him as their preferred candidate for the top post if they win with a majority. Leaders like M K Stalin, Tejashwai Yadav and Arvind Kejriwal have also expressed their willingness to support Gandhi as the Prime Ministerial face of the allies, however, other leaders such as Sharad Pawar would rather see West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and BSP chief Mayawati as their candidate.

Stating that the main aim of the Congress party is to dethrone the NDA government, Azad confidently said that, on the basis of his experience, neither the BJP nor the NDA will come back to power in the Centre. “Narendra Modi will not become the Prime Minister for a second time. A non-NDA and non-BJP government will take power at the Centre after this Lok Sabha election,” he said, while addressing the reporters.

Taking a shot at the BJP, he said that they have been “thoroughly exposed” after coming to power in 2014 by following the “creating hatred and divide” in society ideology.

Speaking about the smashing of the bust of Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar, a noted philosopher and a key figure of Bengal Renaissance, during a fight between the BJP and TMC supporters during Amit Shah’s roadshow in Kolkata on Tuesday, Azad condemned the act and said that strict action should be taken against those responsible.