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In Nitish Kumar's opinion, Narendra Modi is the "most unbecoming" of prime ministers he (Nitish) has seen in his life and Lalu Prasad is "best suited" to retort to the Prime Minister in his inimitable style. In an interview with Nalin Verma on Sunday on the eve of presenting the last report card of his present dispensation, the chief minister expressed his displeasure at the Centre's "inability" to provide second term to Nobel Laureate Amartya Sen as Nalanda University's chancellor but hoped that George Yeo would carry forward Sen's legacy. Excerpts:

• TT: What is your take on Prime Minister Narendra Modi focusing on the economic development and announcing over Rs 50,000-crore package for Bihar at the end of Parliament's session?



Nitish Kumar: The Prime Minister brazenly banks on speaking ardhsatya (half truth) all the time. I am unable to figure out why he should wait for Parliament's session to end for such an announcement? The session, in no way, stops a Prime Minister from making an announcement. He can announce it in Parliament itself. And what package? Bihar is about to suffer a loss of Rs 50,000 crore because of the new devolution rules as per the recommendations of the 14th Finance Commission. Modi said the state was going to receive Rs 3.75 lakh crore in the next five years against about Rs 1.5 lakh crore in the previous five years. But he concealed the fact that the state had got Rs 1.5 lakh crore out of Rs 14 lakh crore in the overall central pool. Now, the state will get Rs 3.75 lakh crore out of Rs 40 lakh crore in the central pool. It is a matter of record... in black and white... that none of the projects he inaugurated yesterday was his "gift" to the state. All the projects and schemes had been initiated by the previous UPA government. He had nothing to give to the state. He is the most unbecoming of the Prime Ministers. I do not remember too much of Jawahar Lalji (Jawahar Lal Nehru) but I have watched and heard the Prime Ministers from Lal Bahadur Sashtri onwards speaking. No Prime Minister spoke as much half truth as he (Modi) speaks.





• TT: It is an election year. How will you counter Modi who is going to be the star campaigner of his party in the state?



Nitish: I will speak on the basis of facts and figures. But Lalu Prasad ji is best suited to reply Modi in his (Modi's) language. Laluji jaisa pratiutpanna matitva ka dimag rakhne walaa desh mein birle hoga (There are very few in the country to match Lalu's presence of mind and gift with the gab). I have already praised his initiative with tumtum (tonga) against the BJP's hi-tech rath.



• TT: Amartya Sen has given way to George Yeo as chancellor of the Nalanda University - your dream project, which the Nobel Laureate was committed to. How will you react?

Nitish: Had Sen been allowed the second term, the Nalanda University, a world-class facility in the making, would have been benefited by his recognition as the world-class academic personality in attracting academic faculties from all across the world. Sen had played a pivotal role in working the out the modalities of the university. He had worked out each and every theoretical and practical tenets of the institution. But the present dispensation (led by Modi) does not accommodate our views in the matter of appointments unlike the previous one. I am unhappy at the Centre's inability to give second term to Sen. Still, I hope that Yeo, the new chancellor who has been associated with the Nalanda project since beginning, will carry forward Sen's legacy. Yeo met me after taking over as the chancellor saying that he had agreed to enter Sen's shoes on the condition that the autonomy of the project would not be fiddled with. We have given 100 acres of additional land to the university as endowment. We will always keep a watch on any nefarious move to fiddle with the institution's autonomy.



• TT: Actor-turned-BJP MP Shatrughan Sinha had a long meeting with you last night...



Nitish: Shatrughan is a fabulous actor and is known as Bihari Babu. I have regards for him and vice versa. We keep on meeting. He is an actor who cannot speak the language of parochial Sangh parivar. He is not a Sanghi. The current crop of the BJP leaders wants him to speak in their language, which he cannot afford to do as an actor, popular in all the sections of society. We treat him as pride of Bihar. The BJP believes in use and throw policy, which Shatrughan abhors.



• TT: It will be your last report card detailing your achievements of about 10 years in office. Are you satisfied?



Nitish: There is no reason for dissatisfaction. We have done extremely well at almost all the indicators of human development - education, health, power and overall infrastructure building. Against 39 patients per month when I took over the reigns in 2005, our public health centres are receiving 11,000 patients each per month. Girls and boys are attending schools almost in equal number which is far above the national average, thanks to our cycle and uniform schemes. By all accounts, the power situation has vastly improved and the state has got a wide network of roads and bridges in the last 10 years.



• TT: But the law and order is said to have been deteriorated in the last one year or so...



Nitish: Yes, I admit that localised communal tension has increased since the BJP parted ways with us. We are cognisant to the development. We are studying why such incidents, particularly on local scale, have grown. But it is known to all that the BJP gets benefited more because of such a situation. They (BJP) thrive on such a situation. But we are keeping a vigil.