'Look At Me I Am 74': Nitish Kumar's Reaction To Bihar Locality's Oldest Resident Sparks Laughter

Bihar CM Nitish Kumar's surprising reaction on learning the age of the oldest resident of a locality near Patna, where he had gone for an Independence Day event sparked laughter at the gathering.

On the occasion of the 78th Independence Day, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Thursday hoisted the tricolour at the Gandhi Maidan. As per his Independence Day custom, Kumar, like every year, visited a 'Mahadalit Tola' in Danapur on the outskirts of Patna, where the oldest resident of the locality hoisted the national flag.

While there, the Bihar CM was taken aback when he got to know that the age of the oldest resident of the Dalit settlement, Ramashish Ram, was 69 years. 

Upon learning this during his conversation with Ram, Nitish Kumar was left shocked and expressed his suprise commenting that he had expected Ramashish Ram to be older.

During his speech, Kumar turned towards Ram and asked him how old he was. On hearing Ram's reply, Kumar exclaimed: "You are just 69? Then why do you look so haggard? Look at me I am 74."

Kumar then urged Ram to change his lifestyle, go for walks, and play outdoors to improve his heatlh. 

He then advised Ram to stay strong and get physically active as he asked him to compare how he looked with him. "Nobody can guess my age, given the robustness of my physical health," the Bihar CM said.

This left the people gathered there in spilts as they saw the Bihar CM's reaction.

The Bihar CM is not known to suffer from any serious ailments and reportedly leads a disciplined life. However, the instances of slips of the tongue in public trigger speculations about his health every now and then.

Notably, Kumar's assertion of his physical well-being came in the backdrop of rumours about the JD(U) supremo's health, which the opposition party RJD and strategist-turned-politician Prashant Kishor, have been referring to in their public pronouncements.

When Oppn Questioned Kumar's Mental Health 

Earlier this year, Kumar's eratic behaviour at an election rally of PM Modi sparked murmurs about his health issues. 

In his speech, the Bihar CM was heard fumbling "char lakh (four lakh) seats, before correcting himself and saying "char hazaar se bhi zyada (more than 4,000 seats)."

He then went on to bend towards the PM's feet before greeting him with folded hands. This had left Tejashwi Yadav in "anguish" as he was aghast to see his former chief touching PM's feet despite being an elderly person. 

'It clearly shows the Bihar CM does not enjoy optimal mental health," Congress's Rajesh Rathore said, following this incident at the PM's rally in April.