Red carpet for Nitish, exit door for Laloo

‘‘The Governor has invited me to take oath as Chief Minister tomorrow. Ten to twelve people will also take oath as ministers,’’ Kumar said as he emerged from the Raj Bhavan. The swearing-in ceremony will take place at the historic Gandhi Maidan.

BJP’s Arun Jaitley and Sushil Kumar Modi—the BJP legislature party has elected Modi as its leader and he will be the Deputy CM—and JD(U)’s Sharad Yadav and Bijendra Yadav, the party’s state president, accompanied Kumar to the Raj Bhavan.

The change of guard in Bihar was visible at the airport itself. While a huge crowd of JD(U)-BJP supporters gathered outside to welcome Nitish, Laloo slipped into the departure hall quietly to set out for Delhi.

Also taking the flight to Delhi was Election Commission advisor K J Rao, already being hailed as the real hero of the elections. On spotting Rao, NDA supporters cheered him, raising slogans of ‘‘K J Rao Zindabad’’. The EC official had a difficult time entering the airport as the crowds wouldn’t let him pass.

But when Nitish Kumar emerged, he was immediately mobbed, garlanded and applauded. Many who couldn’t get near him simply threw the garlands at him.

In another part of Patna, Rabri Devi prepared herself for the new role as Leader of Opposition in the Assembly. ‘‘Victory and defeat are part of life. I am ready for the challenge but the new government has bigger challenges before it,’’ she said.