‘NITISH CALLS ON LALU’

PATNA: Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar’s phone call to ailing RJD chief Lalu Prasad on Tuesday evening has sent sparks flying in political circles of a possible realignment of two parties.

PATNA:Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar’s phone call to ailing RJD chief Lalu Prasad on Tuesday evening has sent sparks flying in political circles of a possible realignment of two parties once again. Kumar, the JD (U) president, called Lalu and enquired about his health. Lalu underwent a fistula operation at a Mumbai hospital on Sunday.

Kumar’s party rejoined NDA in July 2017 after parting ways with the Grand Alliance. A debate has broken out over the projection of Kumar as the face of NDA in Bihar, which did not go well with other alliance partners, the RLSP and the LJP.

Only recently, the Kumar-led NDA did not like the manner in which it was demeaned by Union minister for road and surface transport Nitin Gadkari for not providing land for road projects.

Kumar reciprocated the gesture by criticising the Namami Gange Project. Neither Kumar nor his ministers took part in the Yoga Day programme organised officially for the first time in Bihar. But leader of opposition Tejashwi Yadav was quick to rule out any possibility of Kumar’s return to the GA. “The door is closed for his return,” said Tejashwi on Tuesday evening. About Kumar’s call to Lalu, Tejashwi tweeted, “Nothing but a late courtesy call... Surprisingly Nitish ji got to know about his health after four months...”