Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar today met Rashtriya Janata Dal leader Lalu Prasad Yadav, who is admitted to a hospital in Patna due to a fracture in his right shoulder. His condition is stable but, for better treatment, he will be shifted to the AIIMS in Delhi later in the evening, it is learnt.
Mr Yadav, 74, who is on bail in a fodder scam case, fell down the stairs of his house in Patna on Sunday and had to be rushed to hospital. His condition has improved over the past two days, according to sources at Paras Hospital. He has been talking to relatives and visitors. He will be taken to Delhi around 6pm in an air ambulance, it is learnt.
Nitish Kumar said Mr Yadav's medical expenses will be borne by the state as "that is his right". "We have been old associates. I wish him a quick recovery."
Mr Yadav's son, Tejashwi Yadav, has said: "Everyone knows about his kidney and heart issues; treatment was going on in Delhi. Those doctors have his medical history, that's why we're taking him there."
Earlier today, BJP leader Shahnawaz Hussain also met Mr Yadav.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi had yesterday enquired about his health by speaking to Tejashwi Yadav over the phone.
Nitish Kumar and Lalu Yadav go back a long way as both emerged from the Jayprakash Narayan-led movement against the then Congress government in the 1970s. They have been allies and also ran a government with the Congress, though at present Nitish Kumar's Janata Dal (United) is in a pact with the BJP.
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