File photo: RJD chief Lalu Prasad Yadav with JD-U leader Nitish Kumar.
It's an unlikely spot for a celebration, but a hospital room in Mumbai is likely to turn into the meeting point on Wednesday for two politicians who won big this week.
Nitish Kumar, said sources, will visit Lalu Yadav, who is being treated for a heart condition far away from Bihar, where their alliance (which included the Congress as a junior partner) won six of the 10 seats in the state's by-election yesterday. The result was a setback for the BJP, which swept the national election in Bihar, like most other parts of the country, winning 31 of the state's parliamentary seats.
Lalu, as the 67-year-old leader is known, was hospitalised on the day that the by-election results were counted - his family said his admission was planned for a routine check-up, but doctors have since confirmed he will undergo heart surgery.
The results of this week's by-elections in Bihar are likely to forge a deeper bond between Mr Kumar and Lalu. The state votes next year for its new government, and a united front of the two leaders could ensure they accrue the Muslim-Yadav-Backward Castes vote, key to staving off the BJP.
Mr Kumar resigned as Chief Minister of Bihar after his party, the Janata Dal United, polled just two parliamentary seats. He installed another leader from his party to head the government, and teamed up with Lalu, who was once a bitter opponent.
Lalu was Chief Minister till 1997 when he was forced to step aside over corruption charges; he then made his wife Rabri Devi the head of the state government. It was Mr Kumar who ousted them from power in 2005.