Bihar Prime Minister Nitish Kumar tried on Thursday to clarify his recent comment “aakhiri chunaav” (latest poll), which had sparked intense speculation, and claimed it was a statement made by him every time an election campaign ended, but it was “misunderstood” this time.
The president of JD (U) was speaking to journalists here for the first time after the results of the assembly elections came out and the NDA obtained a clear majority, although his own party suffered a fall and was overtaken by the junior partner. BJP. The JD (U) won 43 seats compared to 71 for the saffron party.
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“You guys didn’t do it well. I say the same thing in the last rally in every election ant bhala to sab bhala (everything is fine if it ends well), ”Kumar said when asked about his closing remarks at an election meeting he addressed in the Purnea district last week, shortly before campaigning. because the final phase of the polls came to an end.
Listen to what I said before and after and you will understand the context. If you had, you would not have misunderstood it, “said Kumar, whose words” ye mere aakhiri chunaav hai “(this is my last choice) were interpreted by the opposition as an admission of impending defeat and a ploy to strike a chord. of an angry electorate.
However, the JD (U) leaders had later come out with a clarification that “aakhiri chunaav” meant “aakhiri chunaavi sabha” (last election meeting) and Kumar did not refer to retirement.
The 69-year-old prime minister, who has been in power since 2005, seemed unhappy with projections of strong anti-incumbency during the elections and predictions of a government defeat.
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“I have been serving people selflessly. Still, some people managed to create some confusion. You must have noticed the anxieties that were aroused in the public mind after the projections of the exit polls, “said Kumar.
Most exit polls had predicted a comfortable victory for the RJD-led Grand Alliance, prompting fears among those who were not sympathetic to Lalu Prasad’s party that his return to power could lead to anarchy. .
“Jungle Raj,” alluding to the supposed anarchy that prevailed during the 15 years that Prasad and his wife Rabri Devi had ruled the state, became the recurring theme of the NDA’s election campaign.
Giving weight to the narrative, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is credited with the stellar performance of the BJP, had repeatedly warned the people of the state against promises made by Prasad’s heir apparent, Tejashwi Yadav, whom he never mentioned for his name but he was always referred to as “Jungle raj ke yuvraj”.
Yadav was also the top ministerial candidate for the RJD-led Grand Alliance.
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