PATNA: A day before Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar is set to step down amid a change of guard in the state, Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader Tejashwi Prasad Yadav on Monday claimed that the new NDA government headed by a BJP chief minister would lack the people’s mandate, alleging it would be controlled by two leaders from Gujarat.
Addressing the media at the RJD headquarters in Patna, Tejashwi, in an oblique reference to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah, claimed that the two leaders would decide who becomes the next Chief Minister of Bihar.
He asserted that the NDA had contested the last Assembly elections under Nitish Kumar’s leadership, and therefore any new chief minister would lack the people’s mandate.
He further alleged that Bihar’s treasury was empty at a time at the transition of power in the state.
“The government does not have money to pay salaries to MLAs and MLCs. The money that should be spent on development works is not being spent anywhere,” he alleged.
Leader of Opposition in Bihar assembly alleged that in 20 years, NDA government has left Bihar far behind in terms of education, health, and industry, as Bihar has the ignominious distinction of being the poorest state in the country.
“JD (U) is acting as a cell of the BJP,” he claimed.
“The crime rate in Bihar has risen alarmingly. Corruption and loot have increased significantly. The BJP and NDA have ruined the entire state of Bihar,” he alleged.
RJD leader alleged that the government did not have money to pay salaries to MLAs and MLCs as the development funds were being diverted. Payments to contractors have also stopped, he alleged.
“When I raised questions about all this, the government official asked for my PAN number and account number and my salary was transferred to my account. It is another matter, I had raised the issue in the interest of all the people of Bihar,” he added.
Earlier, he launched the student wing of RJD in a new avatar and said that the new organisation would be known as Socialist Student Association of India (SSAI). About the student wing of the RJD, he said that the SSAI would raise the student-related issues forcefully in universities across the country.