Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday asserted that the "NDA under the leadership of Chief Minister Nitish Kumar" will break all previous electoral records in the Bihar Assembly polls, while taking a swipe at the opposition INDIA bloc, which he said was led by "people out on bail".

Addressing his maiden election rally in the poll-bound state, the PM asked the crowds to switch on the lights of their mobile phones, and in a dig at the RJD, said, "When all people have access to such modern gadgets, there is no need for the lantern".

Showering praise on Nitish Kumar, who heads the JD(U) and seeks a fifth consecutive term in office, Modi alleged, "He came to power in 2005, but nearly a decade of his tenure was hampered by a hostile Congress-led UPA government at the Centre, which was constantly blackmailed by the RJD that it would withdraw support if cooperation was extended to the NDA government in Bihar.”

The PM added, "The central assistance extended to Bihar in the last 11 years is three times what the state had received from the previous government. The state has turned the corner. It is now exporting fish, a far cry from the days when it was dependent on other states for its own needs. Makhana, which is a famous produce of Bihar, has access to markets far and wide".

"Bihar is now an attractive investment destination. I foresee a future in which every district will be teeming with startups of local youths", the PM added.

"All this would not have been possible had there been 'jungle raj' in Bihar. Don't you remember that a former PM had said that of every rupee spent by the government, only 15 paise reached people. The money used to be devoured by a blood-stained hand (khooni panja)", said Modi, in an obvious reference to former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi and the poll symbol of Congress, the RJD's alliance partner.