RJD's 'Kaam Ki Baat' to counter PM Narendra Modi's 'Mann Ki Baat'

PATNA: RJD leader Raghuvansh Prasad Singh today scoffed at Prime Minister's ' Mann Ki Baat' programme and said RJD would start ' Kaam Ki Baat' to highlight the promises the PM failed to keep.

The RJD national vice-president expressed surprise and dismay over a 'Mann Ki Baat' programme aired in November 2015, wherein the Prime Minister sounded ignorant about 'ASHA' workers.

"There are altogether nine lakh ASHA (Accredited Social Health Activist) workers in the country. But to my utter surprise, PM Modi in his 'Mann Ki Baat' programme, aired in November, 2015, said he came to know about the nationwide network of ASHA workers after Bill and Melinda Gates praised their work," Singh said.

In order to counter Modi's 'Mann Ki Baat', RJD has decided to start 'Kaam Ki Baat' every month to highlight the unfulfilled promises given by the PM to masses.

"By holding 'Kaam Ki Baat', we will not only be talking about issues, but would make efforts to get the works related to poor done, by putting pressure on authorities via agitation," he said.

To begin with, the former Union Minister said, RJD would start a stir for paying a fixed amount to ASHA workers and also for enhancing monthly payment to around 20 lakh Aganwadi workers in the country.

Besides, the party would also launch agitations for providing more subsidy to farmers and payment of wages to labourers working in fields from the account of MGNREGA scheme, Singh, who is credited with starting the rural employment guarantee scheme during UPA I, said.

The RJD leader also sought to know about the fate of the second AIIMS promised for Bihar in addition to the one at Patna.

In reply to a query as to why Bihar CM and JD(U) national president Nitish Kumar was not going to Samajwadi Party rally on November 5, Singh said, "If the CM is not going to the rally, what can I do?"

Singh, however, said that he would try to create an atmosphere to bring together all the secular forces on a single platform to defeat BJP in poll-bound Uttar Pradesh.