In new company, Nitish Kumar’s new clothes — a lighter shade of ‘secularism’

In an exchange of words with his former deputy Tejashwi Yadav during the trust vote in the Bihar Assembly Monday, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar threw a taunt at the RJD that is being read as another sign of how far the JD(U) leader who once swore by secularism has travelled in the course of his flip-flops across the political spectrum.

Nitish, who accused the RJD of “minting lakhs of rupees” while the two were in power together, also accused the party of doing “too much Hindu-Muslim politics”, with an eye on the Muslim vote – which was not too different from the BJP’s charge against the RJD of “Muslim appeasement”.

Even though his series of political somersaults means that Nitish has frequently had to eat his words, this statement remains a first. In 2013, the JD(U) chief had parted ways with the BJP citing its “politics of communalism”, particularly making his displeasure evident towards its rising star Narendra Modi.

On Monday, speaking about its latest ally-turned-foe RJD, Nitish said in the Assembly: “Yeh baat karte the inke saath Muslim hain. Kitna Hindu-Muslim ka jhagda hota tha. Idhar hum aaye to Hindu-Muslim ka jhagda kam karte the (These people would say Muslims are with them. There were so many Hindu-Muslim clashes. It was when I took over as the CM that I controlled it).”

While one reason could be Nitish clutching at explanations for his latest change of heart, with Tejashwi daring him to give a “valid reason”, the RJD seized on the significance of the JD(U) leader’s statement.

RJD national spokesperson Subodh Kunar Mehta told The Indian Express: “Nitish Kumar’s statement is a complete volte face of his stance. He looks to be appropriating the divisive politics of the BJP by trying to shift the blame on us. But his