On the last day of poll campaign, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar announced that this was going to be his last election and “all is well that ends well”.
“Parso chunav hai aur yeh mera aakhiri chunav hai…aur ant bhala to sab bhala (the poll is day after tomorrow and it is my last election…all is well that ends well)”, said Chief Minister and JD(U) president Nitish Kumar while addressing a public meeting at Dhamdaha in Purnia district of northeast Bihar.
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Mr. Kumar, 69, is facing huge anti-incumbency in the polls as he seeks the fourth consecutive term as Chief Minister.
RJD takes a dig
RJD leader Mrityunjay Tiwari said, “Our leader Tejashwi Yadav has been saying for long that farewell for Nitish Kumar is guaranteed on November 10.”
“Yeh to aise bhi unka last chunav hi tha [Even otherwise, it was his last election],” Mr. Tiwari said.
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BJP leader Prem Ranjan Patel countered Mr. Tiwari, saying the JD(U) chief “might have meant that it was the last phase of the ongoing election”. “Even if Mr. Kumar wants to retire, the people of Bihar will not allow him to,” Mr. Patel said.
In an interview to a news channel a few days ago, Mr. Kumar had said “he would work as long as people liked him to work”.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, Mr. Kumar and Mr. Yadav addressed a series of public meetings across the State during the campaigning for the final phase of the polls.
The Pulwama terror strike, dilution of Article 370, the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, Ganga and Chhatee Maiya (sun god) figured in Mr. Modi’s speeches
