Phase 3 of Bihar polls today: Nitish Kumar brazens out tantric video, dares Modi to debate on Gujarat model

It’s rare that a leader makes about an hour-long opening statement at a press conference. Nitish Kumar is not known to be someone who relishes an endless monologue. But then this is no peace time in the state. And the Bihar chief minister and JD(U) boss had a special target: Narendra Modi. Two phases of polling have been completed and campaigning for the third phase has ended. At 7 a.m Wednesday, 50 assembly constituencies across six districts will vote in the third phase of the ongoing assembly elections in Bihar. Voting will be spread across Patna, Vaishali, Saran, Nalanda, Buxar and Bhojpu and ends at 5 pm. Voting ends an hour earlier in 10 Maoist-hit constituencies. Before the electorate in 50 seats press the vote button on Wednesday, Nitish Kumar had a message to deliver. No matter how hard he had been campaigning through the days and addressing directly to the people in various public meetings. In the last two days Prime Minister Narendra Modi has addressed six rallies and is scheduled to address a few more today. Nitish felt it was important for him to respond to the issues raised by Modi through the media. “I am not an atheist and I am a believer (of Hindu practices),” he said. By saying so he was responding to two situations, one direct and another subtle. A video which became viral showed Nitish meeting with a tantric in June last year. The latter blessed him but cursed RJD chief Lalu Prasad. Nitish said he had no problem in meeting an Aughad (tantric) and others should have no objection to it too. After all, tantricism is a sect of Hinduism. He claimed that he didn’t follow what the Aughad said about Lalu and that the video was shot in his knowledge by his party MLA Neeraj. [caption id=“attachment_2485064” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Bihar CM Nitish Kumar. PTI[/caption] Nitish appeared to have taken exception to Modi calling him ‘Loktantric’ which Nitish spelt as Lok-Tantric. “Kya farq padta hai? (How does it make a difference?). Modi’s colleagues (from Sangh Parivar) flout the notion of scientific temper and talk about tantra-mantra. Why do they talk about Ram Lalla hum ayenge mandir wahin banayenge?” he asked and then added with sarcasm “magar date nahi batayenge. I have been with them for 17 years and know them all in and out. Who eats what, who wears what colour on what days.” Second, by detailing his faith in Aughad or tantricism, Nitish was also addressing to a certain social constituency and perhaps was suggesting to them that he was as much a believer as they were in such practices. It was important for him because while addressing a public rally Modi had said: “Nitish and Lalu are conspiring to take away five per cent reservation of the OBCs, EBCs and Dalits and give it away to minorities (read Muslims). I will die to protect your rights and never allow conspirators to steal away your reservation”. This was Modi’s well-calculated twist to the quota controversy which RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat generated, allowing Lalu and Nitish to milk that electorally. Nitish didn’t respond directly to the issue, but in politics a leader responds to an emerging situation only when he or she is ready to take it up. Nitish then tried to drive a wedge between the BJP and the RSS: “I don’t subscribe to the RSS ideology but at least Mohan Bhagwat and RSS are honest and consistent about their stand on reservation whereas the BJP is completely dishonest,” he said. The JD supremo is conscious that some sting expose showing his party men, including a minister and an MLA, accepting loads of cash as bribery for a prospective favour is tarnishing his image as Sushashan Babu. To deal with the situation, he has chosen to brazen it out: “Iss tarah ka sting chalta rahta hai. Kiska kis tarah ka sting kahan hai (meaning NDA leaders) humko nahi malum hai kya?" But he declined to get into details. He then changed gear, blasted Modi for lowering the standards of public discourse. “I can’t stoop to that level,” he said. “Modi talks about hawa and refers to victory in a municipality election that would have an influence on the Bihar election. He didn’t say why local body elections in Gujarat were postponed. Since he talked about hawa let me tell you something on it.” Nitish then read out a parody of a song from the movie Three Idiots: “Bahti hawa sa tha woh, Gujarat se aya tha woh, kala dhan lane wala tha woh, kahan gaya use dundho; hume desh ki fikra wo man ki baat soonata… videsh jata…selfie leta.” Nitish challenged Modi for a debate on development at a time and place of latter’s choosing. “Since NDA in Bihar has not declared a leader and it is fighting these elections in Modi’s name. I invite him for a public debate on development. He will have to answer for his flawed Gujarat model of development,” he said. For Nitish, the BJP has already lost these elections and with each phase the Mahagathbandhan’s victory margin is only going up. He cited Amit Shah’s interview in Economic Times to prove his point where the BJP president says that Bihar elections can’t be taken as a referendum on Modi government’s performance in 16 months.