Modi & Nitish exchange potshots on PM's first visit to Bihar after poll defeat

Prime Minister Narendra Modi made a four-hour visit to Bihar on 12 March, his first since the BJP's defeat in last year's bitter electoral contest with Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and his grand alliance.

At the functions that Modi attended, the two leaders shared a civility that was in stark contrast to the hostility that marked their campaigns. However, neither could resist the urge to take veiled potshots at each other.

Also read - Jury's out: a checklist of Modi-Nitish punches in Bihar

First, Modi landed in Patna to attend the closing ceremony of the Patna High Court's centenary celebrations. While he didn't have anything specific to say about the Patna High Court, he did raise the issue of cases pending in courts all over the country. He proposed that courts issue annual bulletins highlighting the oldest cases they were trying, in a bid to create sensitivity on the issue.

The PM then flew to neighbouring Hajipur, where he dedicated a newly-constructed rail-cum-road bridge to the nation, launched goods train services on the rail portion of the bridge and laid the foundation stone of an additional rail bridge.

Reminder of defeat

Photo: PIB

It is at this function that Kumar took a dig at Modi while welcoming him. He said the PM had come to Bihar for the first time after the Assembly elections, cleverly reminding Modi of the BJP-led NDA's heavy defeat to the JD(U)-led grand alliance.

The PM, on his part, grabbed the next opportunity that came his way to level scores.

Thanking Kumar for his government's help in facilitating speedy implementation of Central government programs, he pin-pricked the CM by observing that the railway project that he was inaugurating today was initiated by Kumar when he was the Railway Minister over a decade ago.

Modi lamented that the project's original estimated cost was Rs 600 crore, but nearly Rs 3,000 crore were finally spent because of a 10-year delay.

Had the project not been neglected in the last 10 years, Modi continued, it would have been ready much earlier and at much lower cost.

Loving Modi, but not voting for him

An interesting sideshow took place during the event at Hajipur, when, in the middle of Kumar's speech, the assembled crowd started chanting "Modi, Modi". The CM appeared a little disturbed, but continued with this speech, while Modi got up and signalled to the crowd to stop the chants.

Hajipur: PM Modi gets up, asks crowd to quiet down as they raise "Modi" chants while Nitish Kumar gave his speech. pic.twitter.com/12DRxszEhl

- ANI (@ANI_news) March 12, 2016

Hajipur: PM Modi gets up, asks crowd to quiet down as they raise "Modi" chants while Nitish Kumar gave his speech.https://t.co/ZbQqukXP6k

- ANI (@ANI_news) March 12, 2016

Conspicuous by his absence was Nitish's alliance partner, Lalu Prasad, who had noted during the electoral campaign that BJP makes ABVP members mingle with the crowd and chant Modi-slogans.

The RJD supremo's son and deputy CM Tejaswi Yadav was present at the Hajipur event, and the PM was seen patting his back. Wonder what Lalu would make of that.

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