Nitish yatra to help build his image

The statewide tour of Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar to review the state government’s seven resolves is being viewed as his image- building exercise in the wake of RJD seeking sympathy after the dramatic collapse of the grand secular alliance in July last year.

JD- U insiders on Tuesday also hinted that the state government would expedite developmental projects in rural areas to win back the confidence of the people. According to political analysts, Nitish Kumar is aware of the fact that a large chunk of rural voters may turn away after the conviction of Lalu Yadav in the fodder scam case.

Observers say that “Nitish Kumar’s worst fear is RJD’s growing popularity in the state especially after a series of cases against Lalu Yadav and his entire family. The RJD is also trying to gain public sympathy after Lalu Yadav was convicted in another fodder scam case recently. Nitish Kumar’s gain during elections depends only on the success of his seven resolves”.

However, JD- U spokesperson Niraj Kumar dismissed such speculations and said that the “party is set to gain from the seven resolves as it has not only empowered women in Bihar but the state government has also decided to provide student credit cards to youths so that they don’t have to make rounds of banks.”

The senior JD ( U) leader also pointed out that women and extremely backward castes have already gained through reservations in local bodies and government jobs.

The JD- U has also been claiming that Bihar has managed to enter into the list of states which is 100 percent electrified. Senior party leaders said that all 39, 073 villages in Bihar have been provided with electricity.

“The efforts in this regard were a part of CM Nitish Kumar’s seven resolves of good governance,” JD- U spokesperson Niraj Kumar said.