Union Home Minister Amit Shah (L) and RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav.
Credit: PTI Photos
Patna: As many as six major election rallies were held across Bihar on Saturday, with Union Home Minister Amit Shah and RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav addressing three each while campaigning for the ruling NDA and the opposition I.N.D.I.A. bloc, respectively.
Shah's speeches in Khagaria, Munger and Nalanda districts were centred around the need to keep at bay "Lalu ji' ke bete", an obvious dig at Yadav, whose father heads the RJD, and has been named the INDIA bloc's chief ministerial candidate.
The 35-year-old leader, on the other hand, addressed two rallies in Khagaria district and one in Bhojpur, dressed in a black T shirt emblazoned with the party symbol, in an obvious attempt to cash in on his youthful appeal.
The day began on a controversial note when Yadav alleged that one of his rallies in Khagaria had been "cancelled by local administration" on the ground that since the Union home minister was also touring the district, two helicopters could not be allowed to use the only helipad available.
"It is sheer dictatorship. In every election people tend to make adjustments. Never before have we heard of the opposition party being denied the permission to hold an rally because the helipad was to be used by the ruling side", Yadav had alleged.
However, things appeared to have worked out as the RJD leader's rallies took place at the assigned venues in Parbatta and Alauli assembly segments, while Shah canvassed for NDA candidates of four constituencies falling in the district at his election meeting in the district headquarters.
Yadav's rallies were all about alleged corruption, inflation and unemployment during 20 years of NDA rule.
Large crowds were seen Yadav's rallies, whose supporters put up posters declaring him "Bihar Ka Nayak" (the hero of the people).
The BJP came out with a counter-attack. Senior BJP leader and Deputy Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary pointed out that Yadav and his father were both named in corruption cases and the RJD's 15 years rule was remembered for lawlessness (jungle raj), a reason why they deserved to be called "villains" (khalnaayak).
Yadav's elder brother Tej Pratap, who has been expelled from the RJD, and has floated his own party Janshakti Janata Dal, frowned upon the exuberance of his younger brother's supporters.
"Tejashwi still owes his standing to Lalu ji. Once he earns his spurs, I would be the first one to shower encomiums on him", said the estranged elder son of the RJD supremo, who is contesting the Mahua seat, adjacent to younger brother's Raghopur.
One of the rallies addressed by Yadav ran into a controversy over the remark of RJD MLC Abdu Qari Sohaib, who took the mic before the leader and declared "once we form the next government, the Waqf Act will be torn into shreds and consigned to the dust bin".
The video clip was shared by the BJP's IT cell head Amit Malaviya, who alleged that the RJD leader had betrayed the party's intent to "loot public land".
While Yadav has been declared the chief ministerial candidate of the opposition INDIA bloc, the alliance has promised the post of deputy chief minister to Mukesh Sahni, the Nishad leader and Vikassheel Insan Party (VIP) chief, who is expected to help broaden the RJD’s traditional “MY” (Muslim-Yadav) support base by bringing in votes from the extremely backward classes.
Although Congress veteran Ashok Gehlot, while making the announcement earlier this week, had said that there would be “more deputy chief ministers from other social and religious groups”, NDA leaders have alleged that the INDIA bloc has given a raw deal to Muslims, which, at over 17 per cent of Bihar’s population, far outnumber the Nishads.
This may have impelled Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, who heads the JD(U), to come out with a lengthy social media post asserting that the NDA has done substantial work for Muslims unlike the opposition which has treated them as "vote bank".
Although Kumar takes pride in having maintained a "secular" image despite his decades old alliance with the BJP, deteriorating health and failure of his party to take an independent stand on Wakf and ensure proper representation to Muslims while distributing tickets, is said to have caused disenchantment among the minority community.