Bihar%20Chief%20Minister%20Nitish%20Kumar%u2019s%20statement%2C%20that%20this%20is%20his%20last%20election%2C%20appears%20to%20have%20confounded%20his%20allies%20and%20critics%20alike.%20The%20statement%20was%20made%20just%20hours%20before%20the%20curtain%20came%20down%20on%20what%20must%20rank%20as%20his%20toughest%20electoral%20battle%20to%20date.%20Battling%2015%20years%20of%20anti-incumbency%20and%20anger%20against%20the%20rampant%20unemployment%20in%20the%20state%20-%20Bihar%20has%20the%20country%u2019s%20highest%20unemployment%20rate%20at%2046%25%20-%20Nitish%20Kumar%20has%20appeared%20rattled%20and%20bereft%20of%20his%20usual%20poise%20and%20confidence%20in%20the%20course%20of%20this%20campaign.

The%20Bihar%20Chief%20Minister%20has%20a%20reputation%20of%20being%20a%20bit%20unusual%20and%20has%20often%20chosen%20to%20do%20things%20differently.%20He%20is%20not%20a%20candidate%20in%20this%20election.%20He%20is%20an%20member%20of%20the%20upper%20house%20in%20the%20state%20and%20even%20in%20the%202015%20assembly%20elections%20he%20did%20not%20contest%20the%20elections.%20He%20is%20a%20reasonably%20healthy%20and%20fit%2069%2C%20and%20ideally%20has%20a%20several%20more%20years%20of%20active%20political%20life%20head%20of%20him.%20Lalu%20Prasad%2C%20his%20contemporary%2C%20is%20three%20years%20his%20senior%2C%20hence%20his%20statement%20saying%20that%20this%20is%20his%20last%20election%20has%20little%20to%20do%20with%20age.

Perhaps%20it%20reflects%20his%20state%20of%20mind.%20He%20believes%20he%20has%20given%20more%20than%20his%20best%20to%20the%20state%20and%20made%20a%20real%20difference%20to%20the%20lives%20of%20the%20people%20and%20lifted%20Bihar%20from%20the%20morass%20that%20it%20use%20to%20be%20mired%20in.%20According%20to%20those%20close%20to%20him%2C%20the%20Bihar%20Chief%20Minister%20is%20both%20hurt%20and%20disappointed%20by%20the%20ferocity%20of%20the%20opposition%20to%20him%20and%20how%20the%20people%20of%20his%20state%20appear%20to%20have%20forgotten%20all%20that%20he%20has%20done%20and%20are%20now%20turning%20their%20backs%20to%20him.

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Nitish%20has%20fought%2C%20won%20and%20lost%20many%20political%20battles%20with%20and%20against%20Lalu%20Prasad.%20However%2C%20he%20finds%20the%20prospect%20of%20losing%20or%20being%20ousted%20from%20power%20by%20Lalu%27s%20son%20Tejashwi%20Yadav%2C%20who%20literally%20grew%20up%20on%20his%20lap%2C%20a%20bitter%20pill%20to%20swallow.%20Perhaps%20he%20is%20also%20calculating%20on%20the%20fact%20that%20time%20away%20from%20it%20all%20will%20help%20him%20redeem%20some%20of%20his%20credibility%2C%20which%20appears%20severely%20comprised%20on%20account%20of%20his%20repeated%20flip%20flops.

He%20started%20off%20in%20the%20Janata%20Dal%2C%20then%20parted%20ways%20to%20form%20the%20Samata%20Party%20and%20finally%20JD%28U%29.%20He%20was%20once%20a%20die%20hard%20champion%20of%20secularism%20and%20vehemently%20opposed%20the%20BJP%2C%20then%20broke%20away%20and%20aligned%20with%20the%20BJP%20and%20was%20a%20part%20of%20same%20coalition%20government%27s%20both%20at%20the%20Centre%20and%20in%20Bihar.%20In%202015%2C%20he%20broke%20away%20and%20formed%20an%20alliance%20with%20the%20RJD%20and%20promised%20on%20the%20floor%20of%20the%20Bihar%20assembly%20that%20he%20would%20much%20rather%20quit%20politics%20than%20ever%20align%20with%20the%20BJP%20ever%20again.%20A%20year%20later%20he%20joined%20hands%20with%20them%20to%20head%20the%20government%20yet%20again%20in%20Bihar.

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There%20are%20many%20who%20believe%20that%20Nitish%20appear%20resigned%20to%20losing%20this%20election%2C%20and%20perhaps%20hopes%20to%20take%20some%20time%20off%20to%20reboot%20and%20re%20position%20himself.%20A%20couple%20of%20years%20back%20he%20was%20looked%20upon%20as%20the%20potential%20challenger%20to%20Narendra%20Modi%20at%20the%20centre%2C%20right%20now%20he%20is%20fighting%20a%20battle%20for%20his%20political%20survival.

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