“I stand by what I had said. We had sought a Rs 14,800-crore relief package to fight the devastation caused by Kosi flood. But the Centre sanctioned Rs 1,000 crore aid. Now, it is asking us to refund even that amount,” argued Nitish.
The whole war of words over Kosi began last week when the Centre directed the State Government to refund Rs 1,000 crore given to Bihar by the prime minister as assistance for Kosi relief. The Centre’s logic was that the cash balance of Bihar in the RBI was positive, hence the state did not need that assistance. “Our contention is that the relief fund has nothing to do with the cash balance in the RBI and, on this logic, Bihar’s legitimate dues could not be denied,” averred the JD(U) strongman. The entire blame game over Kosi started after Nitish rebuffed the overtures made by Rahul Gandhi to join the UPA bandwagon. Once it was clear that he won’t desert the NDA, the Congress and its allies missed no opportunity in slamming the JD(U) leader.
Published 11 May 2009, 17:54 IST