'Tiger Abhi Zinda Hai': A slogan that sums up Nitish Kumar's 'neither tired nor in mood to retire' stance

PATNA — Tiger Abhi Zinda Hai --the title of a Bollywood blockbuster --neatly captures the gist of JD (U) leader and chief minister Nitish Kumar's "neither tired nor in a mood to retire" stance as his party looked set to nearly double its 2020 Bihar assembly tally.

The Bihar Chief Minister had a point to prove in the latest assembly elections, which were held amid speculations of a fatigue factor, if not downright anti-incumbency, made worse by rumours of his indifferent health.

In the run up to the high stakes polls, the 75-year-old aggressively doled out benefits like hike in social security pensions and stipends for Jeevika and Aasha and Aanganwadi workers, besides the much touted Mukhyamantri Mahila Rojgar Yojana, as part of which over one crore women have got Rs 10,000 each in their bank accounts.

His rivals may have sensed the potential of these "freebies", with his former deputy Tejashwi Yadav of RJD alleging that the government has become a "copycat" and ex-confidant Pavan Varma, who is now with another old associate of the JD(U) supremo Prashant Kishor, the Jan Suraaj Party founder, urging the Election Commission to take note of the "bribing of voters".

The longest serving Chief Minister of the state, nonetheless, remained unfazed by criticisms and also allegations of detractors that the BJP was out to do a "Shinde" to him, an allusion to his former Maharashtra counterpart who was elbowed out after the saffron party outshined the Shiv Sena in assembly polls to the western state.

Apparently mindful of the fact that the BJP, which did not have a majority in Lok Sabha, was dependent on his JD(U) for survival in power at the Centre, Kumar undertook a dogged campaign that lacked the flair of the saffron party, which had pulled out its famed heavy artillery, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi leading the charge.

Modi, who addressed as many as 14 rallies, besides holding a roadshow, during the poll campaign, shared the stage with Kumar only once, at his inaugural election meeting in Samastipur.

However, acknowledgement of the good work done by "Nitish babu" came at all public speeches of the NDA’s biggest crowd puller, as he sought to caution the people against a return of "jungle raj".

It remains to be seen whether Kumar, an engineering graduate who spurned a job offer in the state electricity department to take up politics, would be backed for another term in office or the clamour will grow stronger in the BJP, for having its "own Chief Minister" in the only Hindi heartland state where the exclusive seat of power has eluded it.

Born in 1951 in Bihar's Bakhtiyarpur, Kumar entered politics during the JP Movement. He joined the Janata Party and unsuccessfully contested his first assembly elections in 1977. His first electoral victory was in 1985.

His frequent switching sides in his nearly five decades of political career earned him the nickname 'Paltu Ram'.

Although BJP leaders have always been wary of Kumar’s ability to seamlessly side with the RJD-helmed opposition camp whenever he finds the occasion, the INDIA bloc this time is unlikely to have enough numbers to facilitate another flip flop.

In a recent TV interview, Union Home Minister Amit Shah had said that “legislators of the NDA will decide” who was going to be the next Chief Minister of Bihar, a remark that has lent itself to many interpretations.

For quite some time, whenever elections were held for a top ornamental post like President and Vice President, there had been speculations that the JD(U) supremo might be chosen as the NDA’s candidate, to provide him with an honourable exit from active politics.

Be that as it may, the people of Bihar, especially the women for whom he has launched schemes after schemes, besides even imperilling the state’s finances with the imposition of prohibition, have given their leader a parting gift.