Hugging others

Lalu and his ilk miss no opportunity to attack Bihar CM, expressing their regret of allying with him

At Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief Lalu Prasad’s “BJP bhagao, desh bachao” rally in Patna on Sunday, a number of political leaders graced the stage in a show of Opposition strength. One of them was Member of Parliament Sharad Yadav, who has fallen out with Janata Dal (United) Chief and Bihar CM Nitish Kumar. And one of the pictures that emerged from the rally was of Lalu hugging Yadav. This reminded some keen observers of another picture — of the RJD chief hugging Nitish, two years ago when the Grand Alliance was formed. Much water has flowed under the Gandhi Setu in Patna since then: The two now seem to be irreconcilably estranged, and Lalu and his ilk miss no opportunity to attack the Bihar CM, expressing in clear terms their regret of allying with him. What will be the future of Sunday’s hug, one wonders.