Man behind PM Modi's Chai Pe Charcha in talks to join Team Nitish

Prashant Kishor, a core member of Narendra Modi's election campaign team, is likely to work for the Prime Minister's political rival and Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar during the crucial state assembly polls later this year.

A public health expert, Kishor left his job with the United Nations in 2011 and joined a team of young professionals who worked on the Modi campaign for nearly three years. Many have credited him with being the architect of 'chai per charcha' and 3D hologram campaign which contributed significantly to Modi's election victory.

Kishor (37) along with some 60 other professionals had set up Citizens for Accountable Governance (CAG), initially to galvanise votes for Modi and later to address social issues.

Kishor said today he has taken a one-year "break", but did not specifically confirm that he would be working for the Bihar Chief Minister. "The kind of work I do it is natural for people to approach," he said when asked if he would join Kumar's campaign team ahead of Bihar polls.

However, Pavan Verma, a JD(U) MP and adviser to the Chief Minister, said that Kishor would work for Nitish Kumar. "He (Kishor) will join us and whenever he joins us, we will welcome it. He has expressed desire to work for a leader like Nitish Kumar and we believe he brings certain expertise in the area of communication and social media," Verma said.

Kishor also made it clear that he was working for Modi and not BJP. "I was never associated with BJP. I was working in my private capacity for Modi," he said.

His remarks came in the backdrop of reports that he had fallen out with the BJP leadership and party president Amit Shah.

Image: The Jai Ambe Tea Stall in Gujarat which sells 'Namo Tea'