‘Chacha’ hijacked, won’t return as CM: Tejashwi

RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav on Friday claimed that Chief Minister Nitish Kumar would not get the top post if the ruling NDA was voted to power again even as he appealed to the Bihar people to give him “one chance”.

“Our ‘chacha’ (Nitish Kumar) is not in control of things. He has been hijacked by (PM) Narendra Modi and (Home Minister) Amit Shah, who are operating in Bihar from outside. That’s why Shah is saying time and again that the MLAs will decide the CM,” Tejashwi said, appealing to the people to vote for a “Bihari” and not “Bahri” (outsiders) in the Assembly elections.

Addressing poll rallies at Saharsa, Darbhanga, Samastipur, Muzaffarpur and Vaishali, he claimed that Bihar was a poor state despite being ruled for 20 years by the JD(U)-led NDA government. “The time has come to change the regime. People are migrating out of Bihar for studies, jobs and medical treatment. I will stop all this. In my five-year rule, I will do what Nitish couldn’t in 20 years,” he said. The former Deputy CM said his sole aim was to build a “new Bihar”. “Our state will be the first in the country where every family will have at least one member in government job. As a Bihari, I feel sad to see that Bihar is among the poorest states. It’s painful to see the widespread unemployment, rampant corruption and a prevailing sense of impunity present among criminals. We will change all this and provide a clean government,” he said.

Asks why PM mum on crime

Tejashwi took a dig at the PM for calling the RJD regime ‘jungle raj’. “Why does he not speak about the law and order now when daylight murders are reported almost daily? Why is he silent on 55 scandals that took place in the Nitish regime?” he said.

Tejashwi alleged that corruption was at an all-time high in the state. “Can you get anything done without paying bribe at police stations and government offices? For the last 20 years, the people of Bihar have voted for the NDA in the state and the Centre. Now, it’s time to ask them what they have done for Bihar,” he said.

Condemns prohibition policy

The RJD leader also criticised the prohibition policy of the state government, which has been in force since 2016. Incidentally, the RJD was then an ally of the ruling JD(U) and had supported the complete ban on alcohol in the state.

Tejashwi claimed that in the garb of prohibition, the poor and downtrodden were being “harassed and extorted by the police”. The RJD leader said in the past too that he would abolish prohibition if he came to power.

He said he was not making any false promises to lure voters. “If I become the CM, all 14 crore Biharis will become CM. The CM will mean ‘Chinta Mukt’”, he declared.

Tejashwi said in the 17 months he was Deputy CM, he ensured jobs to around 5 lakh youth. “When I made the job promise in the 2020 poll, Nitish sarcastically asked me if I will get the money from my parents. But I kept my promise,” he said.

He said that in the run-up to the 2025 Assembly elections, Nitish acted on the welfare front only after the RJD made promises. “He hiked the old age pension from Rs 400 to Rs 1,100, something he didn’t do for the past 20 years. Similarly, he allowed 125 units of free power after we promised 200 units of free power,” he remarked.