Maintaining that it would not accept that RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav had lost the Bihar Assembly polls in which he fought valiantly against the formidable ruling NDA, the ruling Shiv Sena said on Wednesday that the “historic” polls had thrown up a “new face” in the form of Tejashwi in the national politics.
Heaping lavish praise on Tejashwi who led the RJD in the Bihar Assembly polls, the Shiv Sena in an editorial published in its official mouth-piece “Saamana” said: “We have to accept the verdict in the Bihar Assembly polls. But, we do not consider the poll outcome as the defeat of Tejashwi Yadav. The poll defeat can in no way be considered a debacle. Nor the success achieved by way of increasing the number through a jugaad (a flexible approach to solve a problem) can be called a victory”.
“Tejashwi fought a valiant battle. The battle was both within the family and against a formidable ruling alliance. The ruling BJP in Delhi and the Bihar JD(U) did not lose any opportunity to defame Tejashwi during the campaign. Despite a no-holds-barred attack launched against him, Prime Minister Narendra Modi called him crown prince of Jungle Raj. But, Tejashwi did not lose his composure but went ahead with his campaign,” the editorial stated
“On the contrary, incumbent chief minister Nitish Kumar – apprehending defeat – made an emotional appeal to the voters, saying that this was his last poll he was fighting. He made emotional appeals to the voters. After having ruled Bihar for the past 15 years, Nitish was brought to knees in the poll campaign. This was because Tejashwi concentrated his campaign on issues like development, employment and education and defeated Nitish mid-way through the polls,`` the''Saamana `` editorial stated.
“No wonder that the Bihar polls were intensely fought. It was Tejashwi who brought intensity to the polls. He was undeterred in his fight against either a political bigwig like Narendra Modi or against an experienced political war horse like Nitish Kumar,” the “Saamana” editorial stated.
“This Bihar Assembly polls will go into the history of Indian politics. The power may go into the hands of anyone after the polls, but the Bihar polls have given the country a new face in Tejashwi Yadav. Any amount of congratulations to Tejashwi is less for the manner in which he fought the Assembly polls,” the Sena mouth-piece added.
The Shiv Sena’s wholesome praise of Tejashwi Yadav should be seen in the context of the fact that the RJD emerged as the single largest party in the polls with a whooping 75 seats, as against 74 seats won by the BJP and 43 seats won by the JD(U).