Mehsi (East Champaran), April 20: If the first Seva Yatra was businesslike, the second is more oriented towards public relations.

Nitish Kumar began the second phase of his mission this morning, reaching Mehsi — the gateway to the old Champaran region — and headed for Motijhil Chaklalu, a settlement of zip button producers about one kilometre away, on National Highway 28. Zip button-making is a traditional vocation that has engaged over 5,000 people for generations.

One of them, Alauddin Ansari (55), gave the chief minister a briefing on the conventional tools used to produce the button with snails fished out from the rivers.

Subsequently, Nitish went for lunch at the home of JD(U) MLA from Kalyanpur, Razia Khatoon, the wife of former legislator Md Obaidullah. On the table was a sumptuous vegetarian spread that included pulao, parwal ka bhujia and hot gulab jamun.

Nitish’s cabinet colleague and minister in-charge of the district, Prem Kumar from the BJP, was not a part of the chief minister’s entourage. He came separately and he quietly entered the dining room at Razia’s house much after Nitish had begun eating.

The late and unheralded entry was not lost on seasoned political campaigners. “Prem Kumar reaching late and separately clearly suggests the distance that has grown between the JD(U) and BJP,” said a JD(U) leader.

Nitish is scheduled to have tea and snacks at the home of JD(U) leader and MP, Sabir Ali, at Dumaria on the India-Nepal border tomorrow.

Political observers described Nitish’s “aggressive” campaign in the region that largely has been the BJP’s bastion as part of a strategy to emerge as the “champion” of the minorities in case the friction between the allies becomes more pronounced.

East Champaran, which comprises parts of three Lok Sabha constituencies — all represented by the BJP — has a Muslim population of about 30 per cent. The relatively large Muslim population has led to a polarisation of the votes here, benefiting the BJP.

The JD(U)’s youth wing general secretary, Amarendra Singh, who belongs to Motihari, put it more succinctly. “Most of the seats in the region go to the BJP’s share. We are happy that Nitishji is preparing the ground for fighting on our own strength,” he said.

Unlike the first phase of the Seva Yatra in November, when the chief minister focused on delivery of services at the grassroots, the second has assumed a more political hue.

Nitish’s managers, however, insist that the chief minister will focus on governance this time as well.