AN AIR OF ANTI-INCUMBENCY

Laluji ke raj mein gareeb seena taan ke babusahab (In Lalu Yadav’s time, the poor could hold their own with the [mighty] ).” This remark by RJD (Rashtriya Janata Dal) leader Tejashwi Yadav, while campaigning in Rohtas district on October 26, had the crowd erupting in loud cheers. In pressing their self-respect button, Tejashwi was also trying to subvert the Nitish Kumar campaign pitch—15 years (of Nitish) versus 15 years (under Lalu), which has been a recurring leitmotif of the JD(U) campaign. If Nitish was insisting that there was corruption and misrule under Lalu, a resurgent Tejashwi, buoyed by the big turnouts at his rallies and an apparent late groundswell of support, was turning the same pitch on its head, to tell voters that the poor had respect under Lalu.