Criticising the RJD for acting in a pompous manner after retaining the seat, Nitish Kumar said, "This is not the defeat of JD(U) in the Maharajganj elections.
This was not our seat. This seat belonged to RJD and RJD won. You can assess the mood and temperament of the RJD by the manner in which they are behaving after their victory," he said. The JD(U) leader said his party has been regularly winning elections but has never been pompous, unlike RJD.

"If we have not been able to win in Maharajganj, there is no issue about it," he said. On RJD President Lalu Prasad taking potshot at him on the defeat, Kumar said, "Let RJD be on cloud nine...this jubilation is short lived." Seeking to take virtue out of the defeat, he said, "Though we lost, the vote percentage of JD(U) has increased in the bypoll from that in last general election and assembly elections in 2010."