Hand out '77-like punishment to RJD, Cong: LK

MOTIHARI: Senior BJP leader LK Advani on Tuesday exhorted voters in Bihar to punish RJD and Congress for stoking anarchy in the state for 15 years until 2005.

‘‘ Punish those disputing development in Bihar during the five years of NDA rule in the same manner Congress was punished in 1977 for imposing emergency,’’ Advani told poll rallies at Motihari, Muzaffarpur and Darbhanga. ‘‘ I am overwhelmed by the progress of Bihar. I am relieved to see improved law and order,’’ he said, adding that the NDA government should be rewarded for the turnaround . ‘‘ Do a comparative evaluation of the performance of the Nitish government and non-performance of 15-year-old RJD-Congress government before voting.’’

Taking exception to Congress leaders trying to project Central assistance to Bihar as a favour, Advani said the money didn’t belong to Congress. ‘‘ It is hard-earned money of taxpayers, including those belonging to Bihar,’’ he said, smarting over PM Manmohan Singh’s remarks Central funds were misused in Bihar during the last five years.

The BJP leader said a Central university was not being set up at Motihari only because the state has a non-Congress government. In Darbhanga, he said it was the NDA government at Centre which included Maithili language in the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution and started news bulletin in Maithili from Darbhanga radio station. BJP national general secretary Ravi Shankar Prasad recalled dignitaries like Amartya Sen, Bill Gates and Montek Singh Ahluwalia have also gone on record to praise the NDA government.