Door always open for Nitish Kumar: Lalu Yadav

Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) president Lalu Prasad Yadav on Friday said his "doors were always open" for Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar, his arch rival who recently ended a short-lived alliance and returned to the BJP-led NDA.

Yadav, who has maintained a stoic silence ever since his party suffered a loss of power as a result of the Janata Dal (U) president's volte face, was responding to queries from journalists when he made his enigmatic remark.

On Thursday, RJD candidates Manoj Kumar Jha and Sanjay Yadav had filed their nomination papers for the Rajya Sabha polls in the presence of the party president.

Yadav was accompanied by his wife and former Bihar chief minister Rabri Devi to the Vidhan Sabha secretariat, where he also crossed paths with arch-rival Nitish Kumar.

The two leaders were seen warmly shaking hands inside the Vidhan Sabha premises where Yadav, who stays mostly indoors since his kidney transplant operation two years ago, had gone to boost the morale of Manoj Jha and Sanjay Yadav.