President shortens Bihar trip for Modi’s Patna rally

 ‘The President told us that he will visit Bihar on 26 October to attend a convocation, but will return to Delhi the same day,’ Shahnawaz Hussain said.

Modi will address the BJP’s hunkar rally in Patna on 27 October. The clash between the President’s visit and Modi’s rally had become an issue between BJP and its former ally JD (U). The BJP alleged that Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar had deliberately invited the President on 27 October to scuttle the party rally.

 ‘BJP leaders will be there in Patna on 26 October to welcome President Pranab Mukherjee. It is honour for Bihar to welcome the President on one day and the future Prime Minister of India the next day,’ Rudy said.

Hailing the decision of President Pranab Mukherjee Bihar BJP’s state secretary Mrityunjay Jha said, ‘Our President feels the pulse of the masses. Pranabda has done right thing by cutting short the Bihar visit by a day. It’s definitely a set back for chief minister Nitish Kumar, who tried a lot to ruin the rally of Narendra Modi.’

Meanwhile, chief minister Nitish Kumar said that the state government would now make arrangements in accordance with the rescheduled programme of President Pranab Mukherjee here later this month.

‘We will make arrangements as per the final scheduling of President’s programme by Rashtrapati Bhawan,’ Kumar told reporters at Patna Airport.

The BJP earlier feared that the President’s visit to Patna on 26 October to address the IIT convocation and to Ara on 27 October to unveil the statue of late Jagjivan Ram could disrupt Modi’s meeting in Patna on 27 October. The opposition leaders felt that the Bihar government could use the President’s visit as an excuse to ruin Modi’s rally.