Nitish Kumar receives overwhelming response during his 3-day Sewa Yatra

SIWAN: For years, Siwan remained home to political banditry of Mohammad Shahabuddin who flaunted his muscle power caring little for his rivals. Things slowly changed for the former RJD MP once Nitish Kumar became the chief minister of Bihar in November 2005.

Shahabuddin now finds himself incarcerated after facing convictions in the court of law, his theatricals now very much a thing of the past.

So when the chief minister decided to show up in Siwan for his 3-day Sewa Yatra, the people braving the wintry conditions turned up in huge numbers to greet their leader in acknowledgement of the role he played in.

"We are breathing free now. The rule of law has returned, there is peace and normalcy around. We cannot help but thank Nitishji for what he has done for us," an elderly Ejaj Haq said. His sentiments were echoed by several others who had lined up on the outer flanks of the maidan - near town jail - where Nitish's chopper landed.

As soon as his chopper was sighted, the waiting crowd broke into raptures. From there his cavalcade headed straight to the Siwan registry office but all along the way the police faced a torrid time controlling the crowd, which jostled to catch a glimpse of their leader.

In the registry office, Nitish Kumar went into the nitty-gritty of the registration process. Like an avid student he tried to understand the minutest detail about the whole registration process involved in the sale-purchase deed of landed property or otherwise.

By time Kumar was finished with his engagement in the registration office, a huge crowd had already gathered outside on the road much like the one which would normally wait for Bollywood star. The chief minister did not disappoint them. He stepped out of the car only to waive back to the people. If anything, Nitish Kumar looked every bit of a political star.