Nitish Kumar will not be made Bihar CM if NDA voted to power, claims Tejashwi Yadav at poll rally

Asserting that he feels anguished that Bihar's farmers are still poor despite the 20 years of rule by the JD(U)-led NDA in the state, RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav on Friday claimed that CM Nitish Kumar will not be made the chief minister if the ruling alliance is again voted to power.

Yadav, the chief ministerial candidate of the INDIA bloc, accused the Centre of shielding corrupt leaders and criminals in Bihar, and asserted that he would present a clean government if the opposition alliance comes to power in the state.

The former deputy CM also promised that he would ensure a government that would listen to the people's grievances and provide affordable medicines and jobs for them.


"As a Bihari, I feel anguished that my state is poor, and unemployment, corruption and criminal activities are on the rise. Despite 20 years of NDA rule in Bihar and 11 years at the Centre, the state's per capita income is the lowest and farmers remain poor," Yadav claimed in a rally in Bakhtiyarpur.

He also claimed that Nitish Kumar will "not be made Bihar's CM if the NDA is voted to power".

While talking to reporters in Patna earlier in the day, Yadav said, "The BJP sets up factories in Gujarat and seeks victory in Bihar. This is not going to happen."

Responding to PM Narendra Modi's charges of 'jungle raj' that prevailed during the RJD rule in Bihar, he said, "The prime minister had himself recounted 55 scams of the Nitish Kumar government. What action has he taken? 'Jungle raj' is where no appropriate action is taken against scams, and where criminals roam free."

He alleged that the BJP-ruled states witness the most criminal activities in India.

Yadav said, "I don't tell half-truths and lies. You all know that what I say, I do. If the INDIA bloc wins the elections, Tejashwi will become the CM, and the people will become 'chinta mukt' (tension-free). I will ensure there will be no crime and present a corruption-free government in Bihar. Our government will ensure education, medicines, and jobs for the people of Bihar. We will make sure that our government listens to the grievances of the people," he asserted.

He also said, "I will reduce LPG cylinder cost to Rs 500, increase old-age pension to Rs 1,500 if the INDIA bloc forms the government in Bihar"

The RJD leader reiterated his promise of providing a government job to each household and regularising the services of contractual workers and community mobilisers.