Nitish's house, JD-U office wear deserted look

The sprawling bungalow of Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and the office of the ruling JD-U, which are usually bustling with people, wore a deserted look Friday as the party was pushed to the fourth place in the Lok Sabha polls in the state.

"It is telling a story that the BJP's victory is a big setback for Nitish Kumar and the Janata Dal-United," said a shopkeeper selling cigarettes near the JD-U office on the busy Bir Chand Patel Marg.

He said the place is usually bustling with party workers and supporters, but turned into a silent and gloomy place Friday.

Nitish Kumar's official residence at 1, Anne Marg in the high security zone appeared totally cut off from the world as people in nearby localities celebrated the BJP's win.

"Early in the morning, some party leaders gathered here to meet Nitish Kumar who is watching the counting with a few of his close colleagues," a police official deployed near the chief minister's house told IANS.

Another security official said: "There is no activity inside nor outside as the electoral outcome was poor for Nitish Kumar."

But the situation was entirely different at the BJP office, hardly 100 metres from that of the JD-U.

"Party workers are upbeat... they are laughing, smiling and all of us are in the mood for celebrations," BJP legislator Sanjay Mayunkh said.

BJP leaders distributed sweets and burst fire-crackers, and some of them even played with colours to express their happiness.

Meanwhile, workers of Lalu Prasad's Rashtriya Janata Dal were seen discussing the results at the party office situated near both the JD-U and BJP offices.

There was also no activity in the state Congress office. Not a single party leader visited the office, except a few working staff.

The BJP-led NDA Friday took a clear lead in 28 of the 40 constituencies in Bihar. The Congress-RJD combine was ahead on eight seats and the ruling JD-U in only two.