Talking to reporters upon return from a long vacation, Yadav also rubbished speculations of a rift within the state’s ruling “Mahagathbandhan”, which he blamed on “media outlets acting as spokespersons of the BJP”. Yadav spoke at the airport here, with his father and RJD supremo Lalu Prasad by his side who chose to stay silent, letting the son and heir apparent do the talking.

“The BJP has been jittery since the day Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and we joined hands. The case against me has no substance. All of us understand the game well. The BJP will get a befitting response in the Lok Sabha elections next year”, Yadav said.

He was abroad when the Central Bureau of Investigation last week came out with a fresh chargesheet in the land-for-jobs scam, with his name among the accused, alongside his father and mother Rabri Devi.

Yadav also pooh-poohed reports in a section of the media which suggested that all was not well in the ruling alliance and Kumar, the JD(U)’s supreme leader, could moot yet another return to the BJP-led NDA.

The speculations have followed a series of events, including a meeting between the CM and Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairman Harivansh, who belongs to the JD(U) but seems to be inclined towards the BJP, and a spat between state education minister Chandra Shekhar and the department’s additional chief secretary K K Pathak, an IAS officer known to enjoy the trust of Kumar.

References have also been made to Kumar’s disaffection with the RJD-helmed 'Mahagathbandhan' in 2017, when Yadav’s name had first cropped up in the land-for-hotels scam.

However, Yadav, whom his boss has virtually declared his political successor, asserted “Nitish ji, Lalu ji and I are political disciples of late Karpoori Thakur. We understand the BJP’s tactics and are not going to be intimidated”.