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Updated: Dec 31, 2015 17:45 IST

A day after RJD chief Lalu Prasad gave pointers on managing the law and order situation in Bihar to his ally and Bihar CM Nitish Kumar, the CM’s party JD(U) asked him to not sermonise on governance issues.

Prasad’s impromptu press conference on Tuesday in the wake of the killings of three engineers within three days has led to sparks in the Grand Alliance government.

JD(U) state president Bashistha Narain Singh said: “CM Nitish Kumar doesn’t need any advice on governance. Nobody can doubt his calibre.” Prasad had asked the CM to give a free hand to the police to deal with criminals.

“All alliance partners are free to give advice but their intentions may be different,” said JD(U) spokesperson and MLC Neeraj Kumar, in an oblique reference to the timing and manner of the RJD’s chief comment.

“Nobody can deny that the CM has successfully established the rule of law in a state plagued by social contradictions,” Neeraj said.

While the JD(U)’s arch rival BJP tried to corner Kumar, the chief minister’ sally Congress also raised questions over Kumar’s claims of good governance. Sadanand Singh of Congress and a former Bihar Pradesh Congress Committee chief questioned the ‘intent’ of the Nitish government.

“It’s a matter of great concern. When you talk of good governance, you need to act fast,” said Singh.