RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav on Monday said he always considered Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar to be a father figure, and wondered what forced him to ditch the ‘Mahagathbandhan’ and return to the BJP-led NDA.

Taking part in the debate on the confidence motion moved by the Kumar-led NDA government in the assembly, Yadav also taunted his ex-boss for having been sworn in "for a record ninth time, and also for the third time within a five-year term, something which has no precedent".

“I always considered Nitish Kumar as 'Dashrath' (character from the epic ‘Ramayan’). I don't know what reasons forced him to ditch the ‘Mahagathbandhan’,” the former deputy CM said.

Yadav, who had been restrained ever since the upheaval a fortnight ago when Kumar made a return to the NDA fold, vented spleen on the floor of the state assembly.

“The BJP was scared of the 'Mahagathbandhan' government in Bihar... Can Prime Minister Narendra Modi guarantee that Nitish Kumar will not do another volte-face?” he said.

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