Patna:
Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar returned to Patna this afternoon from a tour and virtually announced that his alliance with the BJP is over.
"It is time to take a decision... conditions are tough now," he said, though he looked relaxed and smiled as he offered an obituary of his partnership. "
Dua dete hai jeeney ki, dawa karte hai marney ki (You wish me a long life, but offer medicines that will poison me)." The remark alludes to the BJP's decision to grant VVIP status to Narendra Modi, which has driven the alliance to break point.
The BJP retaliated with incriminations of its own. Mangal Pandey, BJP's Bihar unit chief, said that the BJP has still not been given permission for a venue to hold a rally during next week's visit of Rajnath Singh, the BJP president.
Mr Pandey also alleged that BJP legislators are "receiving phone calls" from Mr Kumar's party, seeking their support for a trust vote Mr Kumar will have to take after the alliance ends.
The break-up is likely to be announced this weekend at a conclave of Mr Kumar's party, the Janata Dal United or JDU.
Sharad Yadav, the JDU president, cautioned this morning, "Don't assume that the alliance is over." But he conceded that the crisis has been stoked by the BJP's recent decision to choose Mr Modi to head its election campaign.
Mr Modi's promotion was also opposed by a faction of BJP big-hitters like LK Advani who worry that his promotion will be followed by his winning the BJP's prime ministerial nomination.
"If the influence of BJP leaders like LK Advani and Atal Bihari Vajpayee diminishes, that affects us," said Mr Yadav.
The JDU has been an open critic of Mr Modi because it alleges he did not do enough to stop hundreds of Muslims from being killed in Gujarat's communal riots of 2002.