Patna, Feb. 8: Save for the protocol of one chief minister calling upon another, Mulayam Singh Yadav, in his role as the Samajwadi Party president, today blasted the Rashtriya Janata Dal, especially its boss Laloo Prasad Yadav, for letting Bihar slip into the pits despite being in command of the state for the third consecutive term, reports our special correspondent.

The chief minister, who was here to address a public meeting and preside over the entry of rebel RJD leader and former finance minister Shankar Prasad Tekriwal into his party, met chief minister Rabri Devi all right, but remained non-committal on forging an alliance or being part of the Congress-led proposed secular front. He later called her up to thank her for rescuing his kidnapped nephew.

Mulayam Singh said he was pained at the lack of development in Bihar and said the “strides” taken by Uttar Pradesh in his current term should act as an eye-opener for the rulers here.

“I am very interested in Bihar, its people and its development. The present rulers of Bihar have disappointed its people. The situation is pathetic, so much so that people everywhere, including in Parliament, badmouth Bihar. If I can turn around Uttar Pradesh in three months why couldn’t the present rulers of Bihar do anything in 14 years?” Mulayam Singh asked the public at Gandhi Maidan.