Patna, May 3 (PTI) JD(U) supremo Nitish Kumar’s son Nishant Kumar left for Bihar’s West Champaran district on Sunday, where he will start his ‘Sadbhav Yatra’ as part of his mass contact mission.
Nishant Kumar left for the district from the party headquarters here on a decorated van amid sounds of trumpets and blowing of conches as supporters showered flowers on him.
Talking to reporters before leaving, he said, “My first political journey — Sadbhav Yatra — will begin today. The term ‘sadbhav’ signifies love and positive feelings. I will take everyone together, leaving no one behind.” The 45-year-old, who joined the party only last month, is scheduled to kick off his “Sadbhav Yatra” (goodwill tour) from Valmiki Nagar in West Champaran district.
The place had been chosen multiple times by his father as the starting point for numerous “yatras” during a nearly two-decade-long tenure as the chief minister of Bihar.
Nishant Kumar said he took blessings from his father before leaving for the ‘yatra’.
“West Champaran is the land where Mahatma Gandhi toured and started his Satyagrah in 1917. My father also initiated all his important yatras from there,” Nishant Kumar said.
The JD(U) leader said he will propagate the work done by his father over the past two decades and complete any task still unfulfilled.
“I will hold dialogue with senior JD(U) leaders, meet party workers, and take their feedback on how to strengthen the party organisation,” Kumar said.
JD(U) legislature party leader Shrawon Kumar, who accompanied Kumar along with other senior party leaders, said the “message of love, unity, and brotherhood” will be spread through this yatra aimed at “connecting with people at the grassroots level.” The party, which is still recovering from the shock of the 75-year-old leader’s sudden decision to enter the Rajya Sabha, triggering fears of a diminution in political clout, has coined a catchy slogan to announce the arrival of the heir apparent.
“Jai Nishant, tay Nishant” (victory for Nishant, his rise is inevitable) is a catchphrase that can now be seen splashed on the JD(U)’s posters as well as social media handles.
On the eve of the launch of “Sadbhav Yatra”, JD(U) spokesperson and MLC Neeraj Kumar told a press conference in West Champaran’s headquarters of Bettiah, that “Nishant belongs to the land where Emperor Asoka was born. Like his father, he is starting a Yatra from the land of Sage Valmiki”.
“Both Valmiki and Asoka epitomised renunciation. Our supreme leader Nitish Kumar showed the same spirit of renunciation when he decided to give up the seat of power to live by his convictions,” said Neeraj Kumar.
He added that “the same dispassion for power has been demonstrated by Nishant. He could have secured a berth in the new Cabinet or the state legislature any time. But he chose to shun shortcuts and earn his spurs through the tried and tested method of mass contact”.
After the JD(U) supremo stepped down as chief minister, a new government headed by BJP leader Samrat Choudhary has been formed in Bihar.
“Nitish Kumar had always followed the policy of zero tolerance for crime, corruption and communalism. The new government, too, has adopted the same as its motto. In Nishant, we have a leader who will carry forward the legacy,” said Neeraj Kumar. PTI NAC SUK NSD
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