'Aisa koi saga nahi', 'dil ke armaan': Know cheeky jibes that marked BJP vs JD(U)-RJD showdown in Bihar Assembly

The Bihar Assembly’s two-day special session began on an expected stormy note with the BJP, now out of power, hitting out at the Nitish Kumar-led Mahagathbandhan and the latter hitting back.

The war of words was replete with one-liners and couplets. Here is a look at some interesting repartees: 

Taking a dig at Nitish Kumar over his latest flip-flop, former Deputy CM Tarkishore Prasad said: “Aisa koi saga nahi, jisko Nitish ne thaga nahi”. (There is no one who has not been cheated by Nitish Kumar). Prasad claimed that the quote was earlier used by Tejashwi Yadav, the now deputy CM, when he was in the opposition. 

"Nitish Kumar ek aise CM hai, jo khud crease pe rehte hai aur sabko run out karate rehte hai." (He is like a batsman who causes others to get run out to remain on the pitch): Tarkishore Prasad

“Kuch to majbooriya rahi hogi, yun hi koi bewafa nahi hota”: JD(U) minister to BJP. The couplet by poet Bashir Badr roughly translates to -- “there must be some reason, no one betrays just like that”. 

"Chand taron ki tamanna ki thi hamne, raat ki siyahi ke siva kuch nahi mila…Dil ke arman aasuon mein beh gaye….," the JD(U) minister added. He was referring to the demands put forth by the erstwhile Kumar government before the Centre that had led to a showdown between the two alliance partners. 

"Abhi raah mein kai mod hai, aayega koi jaayega koi, tumhein jisne dil se bhula diya, use bhulne ki dua karo...": Congress MLA Ajit Sharma to BJP. 

"Hum cricketer hai. Yeh jodi (Nitish-Tejashwi) dhamaal machayegi. Yeh inning never-ending hogi. Jo darega, woh marega, jo ladega, woh jeetega," said Tejashwi Yadav hitting back at Tarkishore Prasad. (We are cricketers and this pair (RJD and JDU) is going to have a never-ending partnership. This is going to be the longest inning, this partnership will be working for the development of Bihar and the country. No one is getting run out this time.)

The newly-formed 'Mahagathbandhan' government in Bihar on Wednesday comfortably won the motion of confidence amid a walkout staged by MLAs of the BJP -- which has been stripped of power as a result of the recent political upheaval in the state.

Altogether 160 MLAs voted in favour of the confidence motion while no vote was cast against the same. The lone MLA of AIMIM, Akhtarul Iman, whose party is not a part of the ruling alliance, also took part in the exercise and supported the confidence motion.

In his speech that lasted for about half an hour, Nitish Kumar made indirect references to rebellion by LJP's Chirag Paswan, allegedly at BJP's behest, and attempts to cause a split in JD(U) through his former protege RCP Singh.

Kumar asserted that he had "no personal ambitions", rejecting the BJP's charge that his latest volte face was aimed at becoming the prime ministerial candidate of the opposition camp.

He, nonetheless, spoke of his interactions with leaders from across the country whom he has urged to stay united for the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.

The JD(U) leader also recounted his old association with the BJP and underscored the contrast between the current dispensation and the era of Atal Bihari Vajpayee, L K Advani and Murli Manohar Joshi.

Without mentioning Prime Minister Narendra Modi by name, he said "the current dispensation does little except publicity ('prachar prasar')". As BJP MLAs protested, he added, "Speak against me. May be this will earn you some rewards from your political bosses."