BJP Distancing Itself From Nitish Kumar? Reading Between Lines In Bihar

In Bihar, as voting for the first round of state elections draws close, signs are piling up that the BJP is distancing itself from Nitish Kumar - ones that stand apart from its supposed backing of Chirag Paswan's rebellion against the Chief Minister's leadership. Even Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in his rallies in the state last week, sought votes for the NDA and made only a cursory mention of Nitish Kumar towards the end of his speech. The three-phase polls begin tomorrow. Over the last weeks, the two allies have been holding parallel campaigns with practically no overlap. Barring Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Modi and Union minister Ravishankar Prasad, no prominent BJP leader has made an appearance at the rallies of Nitish Kumar or his Janata Dal United.