The lavish arrangements for the Prakash Utsav or 350th birth anniversary celebrations of Guru Gobind Singh have resulted in chief minister Nitish Kumar being showered with praise by political leaders cutting across party lines.
The latest to join the chorus was Punjab chief minister Parkash Singh Badal, who arrived in Patna on Wednesday for a two-day visit to participate in the celebrations.
"Many, many thanks to Nitish," Badal told journalists on arrival. "We don't have enough words to convey our gratitude for such nice and elaborate arrangements, which he (Nitish) ensured by taking personal interest in the event. He even went to Anandpur Sahib to pay obeisance. The Khalsa will always remember Nitish for the way he arranged everything for Prakash Utsav."
Badal was peppered with questions on his opponent Captain Amarinder Singh inviting Nitish to campaign for the Congress for the Punjab Assembly elections, dates of which the Election Commission announced today.
"My visit is not political," Badal replied. It is a religious visit and I will not talk about politics for the next two days."
However, he did assert that the ruling Akali Dal-BJP alliance will win three-fourth of the 117 seats in the Punjab Assembly. Before Badal, leaders who have showered encomiums on Nitish for the Prakash Utsav arrangements include Amarinder, Union minister of state for agriculture S.S. Ahluwalia, and Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal.
The lakhs of Sikh devotees who have come to Patna have also been fulsome in their praise for the Bihar chief minister, who today conducted an aerial survey of Patna to oversee arrangements for the devotees who have thronged the city. "The arrangements here are beyond our expectations," said Mohinder Singh, who has come with his family from Ludhiana. "We were a bit wary while coming to Bihar, but are so happy after coming here. Such arrangements were not made even at Sachkhand Sahib at Nanded in Maharashtra, where the 300th centenary of the martyrdom of Guru Gobind Singh was held. It tells much about the strength of Nitish's character, who has done all this for us even though he is not a Sikh."
