Patna,(BiharTimes): Tension between two NDA partners, BJP and JD(U), took an ugly turn at a high level meeting in Darbhanga on Saturday when the local saffron party MP, Kirti Azad, mustered enough courage to stand up and asked the chief minister, Nitish Kumar, that he be allowed to speak.

Reports quoting sources said that Nitish immediately told the MP, who is an ex-Indian cricketer and son of former Bihar chief minister Bhagwat Jha Azad, to keep quiet.

Azad, a noted critic of Nitish, has been extremely upset at being totally ignored by Nitish Kumar during his two-day Sewa Yatra and at not being invited in any official function.

Saturday’s incident took place when Nitish, on the concluding day of his tour, was reviewing various infrastructure projects for the Darbhanga district.

The chief minister not only asked the MP to stay quiet but listen to the proceedings. Azad felt somewhat insulted and retorted in Maithili, the local dialect, accusing the chief minister of being rude. The CM was taken aback and he urged the BJP leader to be patient.

Strangely all this happened in the presence of a number of NDA MLAs and top district and state government officials.

The Janata Dal(United) has, however, rejected the BJP MP’s allegations. The party dubbed Azad as a frustrated man who had displayed such outbursts in the past too. It also said that the BJP leader has been campaigning against the Nitish government and accusing it of being steeped in scams and corruption.

Though there are several other BJP leaders, including ministers, who have been extremely critical of the chief minister, this is for the first time that any one from the Hindutva party dared to openly challenge Nitish in a high-level meeting.

Unlike in the Adhikar Yatra, where Nitish was opposed by a large number of people, at most places by para-teachers, in this latest Yatra he is being targeted by his friends from within the NDA.

In Gaya, for example, banners praising Gujarat chief minister, Narendra Modi, greeted the chief minister, when he visited the place during his Sewa Yatra last week. Their appearance took everyone by complete surprise.