PATNA: While the state is going to the second phase of polls on Tuesday, the campaigning strategy of different political parties and top leaders took politics to a completely new level in Bihar.
The Mahagathbandhan’s chief ministerial candidate, Tejashwi Prasad Yadav, managed to come out of the shadow of his father and RJD chief Lalu Prasad. Chief minister Nitish Kumar, who was known for not making personal attacks on his rivals till earlier elections, makes vitriolic attacks on Lalu’s family in general and Tejashwi in particular.
The 31-year-old Yadav scion not only broke the record of his father by holding as many as 19 rallies in a day, he also did not deviate from the agenda of unemployment throughout the campaign while promising ‘kamai, dawai, padhai and sinchai’, if voted to power.
Political experts feel he has made the fight really tough for NDA, which was earlier considered set for a cakewalk against the Mahagathbandhan. Realizing the threat which Tejashwi is posing to his opponents, CM Nitish has started mocking him and his promise of providing 1 million job in his first cabinet meeting, if the Mahagathbandhan forms government in Bihar.
Nitish also took a dig at Lalu for having nine children as he wanted sons because he did not believe in his seven daughters. In all his rallies, he reminded people of the 15 years of Lalu-Rabri regime as ‘jungle raj’ and warning them against the return of the lantern era.
Political expert and Patna University’s former dean (faculty of social sciences) Nawal Kishore Choudhary said with every passing day, balance was shifting out of the NDA side and CM Nitish’s hand. “NDA is under pressure and it is reflected in the outbursts of CM and his aggressive behaviour,” said Choudhary, adding “But it will be too early to predict the downfall of Nitish. NDA still has some edge,” he said.
He cited various reasons for the shift in balance, which included Chirag factor and economic agenda, especially the employment issue raised by the Mahagathbandhan.
The campaigning for the second phase of polls also witnessed Prime Minister Narendra Modi training his gun at Tejashwi and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi. At a rally in Patna last on Wednesday, PM Modi for the first time hit out at Tejashwi and called him ‘jungle raj ka yuvraj’, which made headlines across the country. From the same dais, he praised Nitish for taking Bihar from darkness to light.
He did not stop there. In another rally on Sunday, he once again attacked Tejashwi as well as Rahul and called the duo as double yuvraj (crown princess), who were trying to bring back jungle raj in Bihar. The PM left no stone unturned and addressed four back to back rallies in a day on Sunday, which was the last day for the second phase of campaigning.
While party heads were trying to mobilize vote in favour of their candidates, LJP chief Chirag Paswan was busy attacking Nitish throughout. However, he seemed to be completely out of his ‘Ram’ NaMo’s favour.
Initially, there was an impression that he would cut into JD(U) votes and help BJP. But, of late, PM Modi in his rallies, did not mention Chirag even once. In fact, he clearly stated that NDA meant BJP, JD(U), HAM (S) and VIP.