Pics: Nitish Kumar Visits Deputy Tejashwi Yadav's Newborn Daughter

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar visited his deputy Tejashwi Yadav and his wife Rachel Godinho at their residence on Wednesday and blessed their newborn daughter Katyayani. The visit came amid efforts to dispel rumours of a rift between the two leaders of the Mahagathbandhan, the coalition that governs Bihar.

Mr Kumar, who heads the Janata Dal (United), congratulated the couple on their first child and was seen presenting a gift in pictures tweeted by Mr Yadav.

Mr Yadav, who is the son of former chief minister and Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief Lalu Prasad Yadav, said the Chief Minister "gave his blessings and love to daughter Katyayani".

Tejashwi Yadav welcomed his first child last month and had said her name was picked by his father.

Mr Kumar and Mr Yadav have a history of political rivalry and friendship. They were allies in 2015 when they defeated the BJP in Bihar, but parted ways in 2017 when Mr Kumar dumped Mr Yadav over corruption charges against him and joined hands with the BJP again. They reunited in 2020 after Mr Kumar broke away from the BJP.

Last month, he underlined that he was happily working with Nitish Kumar as the Chief Minister, puncturing conspiracy theories of a rift between the two top leaders.

"I want to live up to the trust he has reposed in me. Neither he would like to become the Prime Minister nor do I want to become Chief Minister. We are happy where we are. The opposition may fantasise about a chasm between us," the 33-year-old leader said in the state assembly.