Development of Bihar is Modi’s guarantee, says PM
Now, there is a doubleengine government in the State, Prime Minister tells Bihar Chief Minister amid assurances from Nitish Kumar that the JD(U) will not stray from its alliance with the BJP
rime Minister Narendra Modi sounded the poll bugle in Bihar on Saturday at a public meeting in Bihar’s Aurangabad while reiterating that “the development of Bihar is Modi’s guarantee”.
Speaking on the occasion, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar assured the Prime Minister that he would remain with the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) and not “go anywhere from here”.
“Now, there is a double engine government in Bihar, and a peaceful developmental regime has arrived in the State. The rights of the sisters and daughters of Bihar is Modi’s guarantee,” Mr. Modi asserted in his speech. He also asked the gathered crowd to flash their mobile phone torches to “celebrate the occasion of Bihar’s development”.
“In the past, the people of Bihar would sit frightened in their homes,” he said. “But today, trains like Vande Bharat and Amrit Bharat are running in Bihar. The development of this State is Modi’s guarantee,” he reiterated.
PDig at Opposition
The Prime Minister also slammed the previous regime in Bihar and the “nepotism” therein, without naming the Lalu PrasadRabri Deviled Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) government. “These leaders do not even mention the governments run by their Maa-Baap (mother and father).”
This dig was directed as a response to a recent remark by RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav. The former Deputy CM had said that the RJD works not only for Muslims and Yadavs (colloquially referred to as an ‘MY’ party), but also a party of BAAP (Bahujan, Agda, or forward class, Aadhi aabadi, or half population, and Poor).
“Now, such a situation has arisen that even big leaders of their party [Opposition] do not want to contest the Lok Sabha poll. They explore seats in the Rajya Sabha,” the PM added.
The Bihar Chief Minister also addressed the crowd while sharing the dais with Mr. Modi after his most recent volteface, the fifth in under a decade, to join hands with the BJP to retain his office.
“It is a matter of great happiness that the Prime Minister has come to Bihar to inaugurate several projects. He had come earlier as well, but I had vanished at the time,” Mr. Kumar said, taking a potshot at himself and prompting a gale of laughter from Mr. Modi.
At the public meeting in Begusarai, Mr. Modi repeated the slogan of “Abki baar, NDA Sarkar 400 par (this time, NDA government will cross 400 seats). He added that for him, “social justice means the empowerment of women”.
“We’ve made one crore women of the country lakhpati didis (millionaire sisters), and lakhs of them are from Bihar. Now we’ve decided to increase that number to three crore women”, he said.
Focus on development
While listing the inauguration of several projects worth ₹ 1.60 lakh crore, Mr. Modi said, “With double efforts put in by a doubleengine government, Bihar will certainly develop”. He also obliquely referred to RJD chief Lalu Prasad in the Railways’ landforjob scam, and said that the State had seen “much corruption”.
Once again, he took a dig at the previous regime for “promoting nepotism”. “Bihar has witnessed nepotism for decades. Nepotism is the biggest enemy of talent. It is not only the betrayal, but the curse of society,” he said.
“When Bihar will prosper, the country will prosper. And now, Bihar will definitely prosper. This is not only a promise but a pledge, a mission,” Mr. Modi added.