The Aam Aadmi Party wind vane is pointing towards Bihar's mahagatbandhan. This morning at 7am, Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal tweeted in Hindi saying: "According to my information, Modiji is losing the Bihar polls badly. Nitish ji is winning."
AAP sources hinted that Kejriwal may campaign in the third phase of the polls which covers 50 seats including those in Patna.
A senior party source replied in the affirmative when asked whether the CM is thinking about campaigning for the Janata Dal United (JDU).
He explained: "There have been reservations over supporting any political group which involves tainted leaders or the Congress whom we defeated here. Nitish ji has supported Delhi's demand for statehood and several Biharis living here support AAP. Patna's urban voters will be interested in what the chief minister has to say."
Party sources said that even if Kejriwal campaigns for the JDU, he may not extend the same favour to Congress and Rashtriya Janata Dal candidates in Bihar.
These hints from the AAP come at a time when the BJP seems to be changing its game plan in Bihar. In an apparent attempt to insulate PM Modi and party President Amit Shah from in event of a defeat at the hustings, party banners have replaced pictures of the duo with those of local leaders in Bihar. The campaign slogan on publicity material has also changed from " Abki baar, Modi sarkar (this time Modi government) to "Badaliye Sarkar, Badaliye Bihar" (change the government, change Bihar)
JDU had backed AAP during the Assembly polls here in February and AAP has not fielded any candidates in Bihar. Earlier this month, Kejriwal told reporters: "I fully support Nitish Kumar. He is a good person. People should vote him CM." However, he did not clarify whether he would campaign for the Mahagatbandhan.
When the Delhi government was at loggerheads with the Centre for control over the Delhi police, chief minister Nitish Kumar met Kejriwal four times here in May and July. The Bihar police even deputed officers to serve in Delhi's Anti Corruption Bureau over which the territorial government was in a turf war with the home ministry.
"Even the Delhi police are not under the state government. If the government does not decide who should be given what responsibility, what answer are they going to give to the public? We are with them on this issue," Nitish Kumar had told reporters here after meeting Kejriwal in July.
Kejriwal had felicitated Nitish in a Bihari Samman Samaroh here organised by the territorial government in August. He also addressed a Bihar government seminar in Patna later that month with Nitish.
Kejriwal has tried to rope chief ministers from parties outside the United Progressive Alliance and the National Democratic Alliance to support his demand for full statehood to Delhi. The Delhi government hosted a chief ministers' conclave on cooperative federalism here last month which was addressed by Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee. Nitish could not attend it due to his campaign schedule.
