NEW DELHI: Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar on Thursday attempted to touch Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s feet in an unusual moment at the Patna airport, shortly before the PM departed after attending the Janata Dal (United) leader’s swearing-in ceremony for a record 10th term.A video of the incident went viral, showing the 74-year-old JD(U) leader walking up to the prime minister and bending down in an apparent attempt to touch his feet. PM Modi immediately stopped him, holding Kumar firmly by the shoulders and clasping his hands before heading up the aircraft stairs.In a viral video, the 74-year-old Nitish Kumar was seen walking towards PM Modi and can be seen trying to touch the feet of Modi, at the airport in Patna, only to be held up firmly by his shoulders by the PM, who clutched both hands of the JD(U) supremo and uttered a few niceties before climbing up the airstairs of his plane.RJD shared the clip on X, commenting, “In the video, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar touches Prime Minister Modi’s feet at the airport to receive his blessings!”Nitish Kumar, the longest-serving chief minister of Bihar, retained the post despite the BJP outperforming the JD(U) in the recently concluded assembly elections, which saw the NDA win a strong majority. The BJP won 89 seats, JD(U) 85, LJP(RV) 19, HAM 5 and RLM 4, giving the alliance 202 seats in the 243-member House. The NDA’s performance has been credited to the combined appeal of Modi and Nitish, both in their seventies—who have cultivated reputations for governance and women’s empowerment, themes that strongly resonated with voters in this election. This is, however, not the first time the JD(U) chief has attempted to touch PM Modi’s feet. Many social media users also pointed out that Kumar had displayed similar behaviour before.In November last year, during an event in Darbhanga, Nitish Kumar bowed down as he approached PM Modi on stage, appearing to touch his feet. The Prime Minister immediately held Kumar’s hands, stood up, and shook hands with him instead.Later in June, during a gathering in Parliament’s Central Hall, he attempted the same gesture, catching everyone off guard. In April, he had momentarily touched PM Modi’s feet during a Lok Sabha campaign rally in Nawada, an incident that also drew wide attention.
