Nitish is my 'aradhya dev': Manjhi

PATNA: Setting aside all media reports that indicated to a rift between him and former CM Nitish Kumar, CM Jitan Ram Manjhi here on Tuesday expressed his gratitude to Nitish who gave the state its first Mahadalit CM.
Negating the notion floated by a top BJP functionary, CM Manjhi said that it is Nitish who has a large heart and more courage than anybody else. "Nitish is 'Aradhya Dev' (revered figure) for me.He made the proper representation of SCs and STs at panchayat level," the CM said.
Blaming a section of Nitish's coterie that misinterpreted his move to lower the attendance requirement in schools for claiming scholarship benefits by students from the marginalized sections of society, he said some people questioned my opinion in this regard. Manjhi quoted a study conducted by A N Sinha Institute of Social Studies that revealed that less than half of the scholarship beneficiaries belonged to the marginalized classes.
It may be mentioned here that the rift between Manjhi and Nitish had been a hot gossip in the state political circles. Earlier, Nitish did not attend a function presided by Manjhi in which tributes were paid to the first chief minister of Bihar, Sri Krishna Sinha, despite being formally invited to the meeting. Nitish preferred to attend a similar function in New Delhi the same day. Even before this, Nitish also staged a daylong dharna near JP's statue in the state capital, demanding special status to Bihar but CM Manjhi was not invited.