'National role for Nitish Kumar?': Crucial JD(U) meetings to begin on Saturday
Patna, Sep 3: "Desh ka neta kaisa ho Nitish Kumar jaisa ho" was the slogan that rent the air, and summed up the sentiment, at the JD(U)'s Bihar headquarters here ahead of the party's national executive meeting scheduled on Saturday.
The chief minister visited the Birchand Patel Marg office on Friday to take stock of the preparations for the meeting, which would be attended by JD(U) office bearers from across the country and would be followed, a day later, by a meeting of the national council, the apex body of the party.
The septuagenarian was modesty personified when he responded to the chants with folded hands and requested journalists not to embarrass him with questions about his being in the race for prime ministership.
However, banners put up at the JD(U) office bore slogans that sent across the message loud and clear that the party expected its de facto leader to play a "national role".
"Pradesh mein dikha, desh mein dikhega" (it has been seen in the state, now it will be seen across the country), "aagaz hua, badlaav hoga" (a beginning has been made, change will follow) are a couple of slogans indicative of the buoyancy in the party since Kumar bit the bullet and walked out of the shadow of a domineering BJP.
There were some more, which sought to attack Prime Minister Narendra Modi's leadership more viscerally. "Jumla nahin, haqeeqat" and "mann ki nahin, kaam ki" tend to get lost in translation though the import was not lost on politically savvy people of the state.
"On the one hand, we have a leadership that offers outlandish promises of ache din (better days), two lakh jobs per year and Rs 15 lakh into every bank account which are later dismissed by the then president of the very party as a jumla (rhetoric). On the other hand, we have Nitish Kumar who has walked the talk, be it on prohibition or on rural electrification," Rajiv Ranjan Prasad, national secretary of the JD(U), told PTI.
"The recent development in Bihar has set the tone for a political change nationally. The meetings of Saturday and Sunday will come out with a roadmap that would underscore the role to be played by Janata Dal (United) in this backdrop," said Prasad.
The agenda would also include organisational polls and a fresh membership drive, though "national role for Nitish" is likely to dominate the narrative.
Although not claiming to be not keen on the top post, Kumar has nonetheless made it clear that he was serious about fostering opposition unity and was telephonically in touch with many anti-BJP players.
The Left has acknowledged that with five decades of political experience behind him, Kumar will play an important role in forging a united front to challenge the BJP juggernaut.
He has also received thumbs up from regional players such as K Chandrasekhara Rao who visited Patna a few days ago and hailed his Bihar counterpart as "one of the best and senior-most leaders" in the country.
At a press conference he addressed jointly with KCR, the JD(U) leader had said he would be aiming at cobbling together "not a so-called third front, but the main front".
Interestingly, one of the slogans doing the rounds for Kumar at the JD(U) office is "raja nahin fakir hai, desh ki taqdeer hai".
Keen observers of Indian politics may recall the slogan, which became popular when VP Singh was locked in a David versus Goliath battle with the Congress.
It remains to be seen how far the similarities with the bygone era go.
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Bihar: Over 150 children fall ill after consuming 'mid-day meal' in Saharsa
Saharsa (PTI): More than 150 children were taken ill after allegedly consuming food that was part of the mid-day meal in a school in Bihar’s Saharsa district, a senior official said on Thursday.
The incident occurred at a middle school in Baluaha village of the district.
The official said that 115 children were undergoing treatment at the Sadar Hospital, while around 50 students were admitted to Mahishi Public Health Centre.
“We received information that several children fell ill after consuming the mid-day meal in Baluaha. The children were initially treated at the primary health centre, but later, many were referred to the Sadar Hospital,” Saharsa District Magistrate Deepesh Kumar told reporters.
“According to doctors, the health condition of the children has improved, but they will be kept under observation for some time. There is no need to panic. Some kids are having mild fever. They are being treated accordingly,” Kumar said.
Meanwhile, family members of some children claimed that a snake was found in the container in which cooked pulses was stored at the school.
Of the 545 students present in the school, 200 had already eaten their meals by the time the snake was spotted, and later complained of stomach ache and vomiting, they said.
Regarding the claims, the DM said food samples have been collected from the school.
“We will be able to comment on this only after the results of the tested samples arrive,” he said.
