Patna: A man in Bihar chopped off the middle finger of his left hand and offered it to deities to “celebrate” the swearing-in of charismatic Janata Dal United (JD-U) leader Nitish Kumar as the chief minister of Bihar for a third straight term.
Kumar took the oath of office on Friday in the presence of a galaxy of political personalities from across the country. The profusely bleeding man has been admitted to a local government health centre.
The 45-year-old victim identified as Anil Sharma, popularly known as Ali Baba among villagers, hails from Vaina village under Ghoshi police station in central Bihar’s Jehanbad district, some 50 km south of Patna.
Sharp-edged dagger
Witnesses said moments after Kumar took the oath at the sprawling Gandhi Maidan in Patna, Sharma rushed to the local temple with a sharp-edged dagger and chopped off the tip of his middle finger on his left hand. Reports said some local villagers tried to intervene to stop him, but he pushed them away.
He was rushed to a local primary health centre. “Everyone has his own style of celebrating the happiness in one’s life. I love to celebrate that by chopping off my finger. Why should anyone object to this?” he noted.
This is the third time that he has taken such a step. He had chopped off his little finger when Kumar took oath as chief minister in November 2005 and slit his index finger when Kumar took the oath again in 2010.
Sharma, who has lost his wife and has no children, says he is unable to control his joy whenever Kumar takes an oath of office. “This time I was nervous about his (Kumar’s) return to power but thank God he became chief minister [again],” said Sharma, who ekes out a livelihood by farming and selling milk.
“I would have committed suicide had Kumar not become the chief minister this time,” he said.
