Modi rules out taking support from NCP, RJD

New Delhi, April 22 (IANS) BJP's prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi Tuesday ruled out aligning with Sharad Pawar's NCP or Lalu Prasad's RJD after the national elections.

"No, no no... there is no such thing (political alignment with Pawar). As far as friendship is concerned, you would be surprised to know that I am friends with Laluji. We exist in a social setup, but we need to take individual stands due to our political ideologies," the Bharatiya Janata Party leader said at an interaction with editors of ABP News, on being asked whether he would ally with Pawar's Nationalist Congress Party.

Pawar, agriculture minister in the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government, had met Modi but dismissed the political speculation, saying he keeps on meeting chief ministers of other states too.

Quizzed on the support offered by Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray, Modi said: "As far as the results are concerned, I firmly believe that we will not need any such support to govern the nation. But you need everyone's support to run the nation."

"I am of the opinion that in a democracy, to run the nation, we must rise above politics and take support from everyone, (though) we would not need (support) to run the government, we will get full support from the people," he said.

The Gujarat chief minister said that if Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi wins from Amethi and becomes Leader of Opposition "... we will take his support too. In my view, you need to take everyone along to run the nation."