Fresh alliance not a hurried affair, took seven months to finalise

The reunion of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Biahr chief minister Nitish Kumar appeared hurried on Wednesday, but it was in the works for nearly seven months.

Warmth returned to the chilly relationship between the two as early as this January. The two astute politicians met after a long gap at a function in Patna to commemorate the 350th birth anniversary of Guru Gobind Singh.

It was January 5 and TV screens flashed images of the two politicians sitting together, smiling at each other and even holding hands at different moments. “The unease in the relationship between the two leaders was over,” a BJP leader said.

Modi praised Nitish for arrangements he made for prakash utsav and going ahead with prohibition despite opposition. Kumar reciprocated by praising Modi for successfully implementing a liquor ban in Gujarat as its chief minister.

The event at Gandhi Maidan in Patna happened within months of Kumar supporting Modi’s decision to recall high-value banknotes. He also supported Modi on the “surgical strikes” against terrorist hideouts in PoK.

Less than a week after this bonhomie blossomed, Kumar had an ice-breaking meeting with a top BJP leader in Patna.

They met again in Delhi in February to explore chances of a reunion.

The subsequent months saw Kumar talking of a grand alliance against the BJP, and simultaneously sharing with the BJP leadership his unease about the functioning of RJD chief Lalu Prasad, his alliance partner.

He was jittery over Prasad calling the shots in departments headed by his son, deputy chief minister Tejashwi. A dispute between Tejashwi and another minister close to Kumar over a project in Raxaul was another flashpoint.