Showing concern for the development and growth of Bihar is his tactical move to disrobe Nitish of the credit for development. It was interesting to listen Lalu blaming the bureaucracy and vested interest for putting a break on the development and turning his 15-year rule into Jungle Raj. He said as he was fighting the fodder scam case, these people did not do justice to him.

Though he has been meeting the individuals and delegations at his residence, it was for the first time he made a surprise visit to the Indira Gandhi Institute of Medical Sciences (IGIMS). The Director of the institute, Dr N K Biswas, was summoned. Lalu went around the hospital and asked Dr Biswas to submit a report on the functioning of the hospital and the requirements to the principal secretary of the department. Incidentally his elder son Tej Pratap Yadav is the health minister. Obviously, Lalu will ask his son to bail out the fund-starved hospital.

The JD(U) has taken this incident as an affront to Nitish’s stature of an efficient administrator but does not intend to make it a public issue. Senior JD(U) leaders nurse the view that Lalu through his actions and utterances trying to malign Nitish’s image. Lalu is playing the mind game. Politically none could object his moves as being the elder partner of the Grand Alliance he is within his rights to counsel the government and do little bit to improve its image. But his shuttle moves were nonetheless sending the wrong message about the chief minister. While BJP has been trying to exploit the situation, a feeling is making round in the common people that Lalu has started dictating his terms. .

After gunning down of two engineers by criminals some ten days back in north Bihar, Lalu had suggested Nitish to sternly deal with criminals who were determined to derail the development programme of the government. He had said; “I request the CM to take all steps, including taking notorious gangsters languishing in jail on remand and replacing the lax officers” He alleged that following humiliation of a former DGP by the supporters of the supremo of the dreaded Ranavir Sena aftermath his death, the police was feeling demoralised. The DGP has lowered the police prestige and moral. He urged Nitish to give a free hand to the police and also suggested to fix responsibilities on the officers for any crime committed in their jurisdiction.

JD(U) leadership was quick to bang his advice. It told in terse words; “Nitish does not need any performance certificate from any one. The entire country knows curbed crime during last 10 years.” There is no denying that during last couple of months crime has increased and incidents of murders have amplified. While in November 2014, the number of murders was 242, in November 2015,it shot to 284. Again in December 2014, the figure was 235, which shot to 294 in 2015. The figures for November-December 2010, at the start of the second term of Kumar’s government partnering the BJP, stood at 261 and 293 respectively.

The JD(U) leadership views this stance of Lalu Yadav as a tactical move to outwit Nitish. In fact they categorically asked Lalu Yadav not to lecture Nitish Kumar on governance. However this was not appreciated by Lalu. On his part he advised the JD(U) leaders to refrain from such statements and to issue statements only after consultation with their bosses and not exceed their brief. If they do not know what to do, they should stay at home. In fact, Lalu’s suggestion: “the Chief Minister Nitish Kumar ask officials, including DMs and SPs, to visit villages and restore confidence of the people” had angered the JD(U) which took offence to this.

Not letting the controversy die down the RJD vice-president and former union minister Raghuvansh Prasad Singh said Nitish cannot run away and had to take responsibility for law and order lapses, as it was the CM who has been in the “driving seat and RJD is on the backfoot”. His remarks came just after Lalu Yadav’s dig at Nitish over the issue. As if it was not enough Singh further quipped; “JD(U) people are in the habit of hearing ‘jay kaar’ (hailing words) — which they should end and take strong measures to rein in crime causing disturbance to people”.

Lalu Yadav taking upon him the role of the super chief minister has aggravated the situation to a great extent. Before formation of the grand alliance an idea was floated to form a coordination committee of the alliance partners for suggesting Nitish. But this did not find favour with Nitish and it was eventually dropped. Lalu is hurry to wash off his old sins. The grand alliance government has come for him as the right instrument to go for an image makeover. Interestingly in the wake of the killing of two engineers he had said the killers were the same set of criminals who had posed as serious challenge to his government”. He alleged, “Santosh Jha’s gang is active in Sitamarhi and Mithila region, and is involved in threatening officials of private companies, abduction, extortion and murders. They take shelter in neighbouring Nepal after committing a crime. Jha is presently lodged in jail.”

True enough this was not whole truth. It is an open secret that Lalu got a bad name due to his brother in laws. But in the changed situation in order to refurbish his image he was putting all the blame on the doors of JD(U). In a shrewd move Lalu has been trying to assert his position as a “senior partner” and ”elder brother”. Lalu's attack has given the BJP the right tool to hit the government with. Criticising the government for its failure to maintain law and order is nothing but an indirect attack on Nitish, who is heading the home department for the past 10 years. This unravels the bitterness prevailing in the Alliance partners. Both leaders look for an opportunity to attack each other and do so whenever they can. Undoubtedly Lalu has taken the lead. It is not that he is unaware that law and order has always been the USP of Nitish Kumar for which he has won praise across the country

The RJD is not happy at all with the JD(U) trying to pitch Nitish as the national face of the Grand Alliance amid talks of replicating the Bihar experiment in West Bengal and Assam. Even while the war of wits between the two leaders was sharpened, Nitish sent his trusted whizkid Kishore to Assam to prepare the ground for floating grand alliance in there. Notwithstanding Lalu expressing his intent to take on Modi, it is Nitish who has already started coordinating the Congress, Asom Gana Parishad and AIUDF for floating a Bihar like alliance. Significantly AIDUF chief Badruddin Ajmal called on Nitish in Patna and discussed the strategy. This has simply strained more the relation between the two leaders. (IPA Service)