A video clip purportedly showing chief minister Nitish Kumar meeting a tantrik went viral on Saturday and triggered a war of words between the NDA and the Grand Alliance.

The clip released by Union minister for micro, small and medium enterprises Giriraj Singh shows Nitish at the house of a tantrik. The bare-bodied and bearded tantrik is shown hugging Nitish and raising slogans in favour of Nitish but against his ally and RJD chief Lalu Prasad.

When the clip was telecast on television, Lalu dismissed it. "I am the biggest tantrik," he retorted.

In Bihar, the faith of politicians in the "supernatural" is almost mythological. During the days of former chief minister Jagannath Mishra, it was reported how he bathed in goat blood for electoral victory. But Mishra denied the report.

However, the frequent visits by Bihar politicians to the ashram of godman Devraha Baba in Uttar Pradesh's Devaria district, to seek his divine intervention for electoral victory, has been extensively reported.

Even today, many politicians go to Vindhyachal and other hubs of tantriks to seek divine intervention. According to a source, a senior politician carried with him small sachets in his chopper. "Whenever he alighted to address a public meeting, he used to throw a sachet on the ground and then started the meeting," the source recalled. Later, it was found that the sachets had turmeric and the politician was doing the act as advised by a tantrik.

However, Nitish was always believed to be more of a "rational politician". During the total solar eclipse in July 2009, while viewing the celestial eclipse from Taregana in Patna, Nitish ate a few biscuits. It sparked off a war of words between Nitish and his then archrival Lalu.

Lalu declared that Nitish's biscuit eating heralded ill for the state, as it was considered inauspicious to take food during the eclipse period. Nitish had then hit back by accusing Lalu of promoting "superstition".

The video clip released by Giriraj does not have any date. JDU sources said it dated back to June 2014, when Nitish had already quit the chief ministerial post after his party's defeat in the Lok Sabha polls and given way to Jitan Ram Manjhi as chief minister of Bihar. "Whatever be the timing of the video clip, it shows that even Nitish is not above superstition," said a senior BJP leader.

The video clip has predictably triggered a war of words. "When the situation changes, then tantra-mantra doesn't help," said Union finance minister Arun Jaitley, who is still considered a friend of the Bihar chief minister.

Former chief minister Manjhi declared that Nitish wanted to win elections through tantra vidya. He recalled that even Lalu used to go to a tantrik before elections. "The association with Lalu is showing on Nitish," he said.

The JDU was furious over the release of the clip. "It shows the BJP's frustration now that they are losing the polls. Seeking spiritual guidance is not the BJP's monopoly. Why does not Giriraj show the video clip of Rs 2 crore recovered from his apartment?" said JDU spokesperson Sanjay Singh.