Patna: Chief minister Nitish Kumar was quick to make congratulatory calls to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP president Amit Shah, but there is a feeling of schadenfreude in the JDU: the party believes its bargaining power vis-à-vis it's ally will now increase given the reduced margin of victory in Gujarat.

A senior JDU leader said the way the Modi-Shah team had to toil and emerged victorious only after much struggle and bruises will bring "a change in the way the BJP is currently treating and sidelining its allies".

"It will now understand that it needs to nurture allies and keep them in good humour for smooth win in future polls," the JDU leader said under cover of anonymity.

"The party leadership of Shah and Modi will be questioned now and the voices of the old foxes will grow louder. Shatrughan Sinha, Yashwant Sinha, M.M. Joshi and L.K. Advani are among them. It seems the BJP will see a vociferous internal debate on leadership and an eventual mellow-down in the party's stance in accommodating seasoned party leaders," the JDU leader said.

Ever since Nitish left the Grand Alliance to rejoin the NDA in July, there has been speculation about the number of seats the JDU would get to contest in the next Lok Sabha elections, as the BJP and its allies already have 31 sitting MPs.

"The result underlines the importance of having Nitish Kumar on their side in future Lok Sabha and Assembly elections in Bihar and increases our bargaining power," said a senior JDU leader after Nitish congratulated Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP national president Amit Shah on the phone.

The RJD had taunted the JDU by saying the BJP would not give it more than five seats.

But after the Gujarat election results - where the BJP won but by a reduced margin - the JDU knows that it would be able to bargain better for a respectable number of seats in the Lok Sabha polls. "The BJP would like to have Nitish on its side at all cost," a JDU leader said.

After the JDU rejoined hands with the BJP to give Bihar an NDA government in July, the BJP shed its role as the "younger brother" and began insisting it was an equal partner. Not only do BJP ministers report to deputy chief minister Sushil Kumar Modi, they also praise Narendra Modi instead of chief minister Nitish Kumar at public functions. Greater humiliation came when Prime Minister Modi ignored chief minister Nitish's plea to make Patna University a central university during the varsity's centenary celebration. It was seen as a public snub to Nitish.

Also, the JDU did not get a single Union ministry berth during Cabinet expansion.

JDU leaders feel that after the Gujarat poll results, the BJP central leadership will see Bihar in "proper prospective".

Most JDU leaders hope the Centre will be more serious about the "economic package" Prime Minister Modi had announced before the Bihar Assembly polls. Though things have picked up after formation of the NDA government in Bihar, several announced schemes are yet to start.

Work for rehabilitation of Mahatma Gandhi Setu has begun but the parallel bridge is nowhere in sight. A Vikramshila University promised under the package is yet to start. Similarly, work for a new airport in Patna has not started and there are no signs of the three medical colleges being upgraded. "Just laying the foundation stone during election year does not make an impact," said a JDU leader. "People must see work being done." He agreed that the BJP's reduced majority in Gujarat might prove to be a blessing for both Bihar and the party.