Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Friday said that senior Janata Dal (United) leader Sharad Yadav was free to take his own decision on where his loyalties lie, ANI reported. The veteran leader has said he was upset about Nitish Kumar’s decision to ally with the BJP.

“Sharad Yadav is free to take his own decision,” Kumar said speaking to reporters in New Delhi. “As far as the JD(U) is concerned, the party has taken its decision [on allying with the Bharatiya Janata Party in Bihar]. The decision has been taken with the consent of the entire party. I have made this clear earlier too. But if he [Sharad Yadav] still wants to put forward his opinion, he is free to do so.”

Meanwhile, Congress President Sonia Gandhi on Friday invited Sharad Yadav to a meeting of Opposition parties in New Delhi, a move that did not go down well with JD(U) leader KC Tyagi. “Calling our party members for a meeting of Opposition leaders reveals Sonia Gandhi’s wrong intentions,” he said. We have already broken our ties with the United Progressive Alliance and the Bihar grand alliance. By calling us [for the meeting] she wants to create a rift between party members.”

Sharad Yadav is unlikely to attend the JD(U)’s national executive meeting in Patna on August 19.Yadav’s confidants claim that the former party president is considering forming a new front to oppose both the JD(U) and the BJP. Yadav is likely to make the announcement at the “Sajhi Virasat” meeting of Opposition parties in Delhi on August 17. Several Opposition leaders are likely to attend the meeting.