Patna: Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar has thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for fulfilling his long- standing demand to confer the country`s highest civilian award, Bharat Ratna, to former chief minister and socialist icon Karpoori Thakur posthumously even as PM Modi talked to Karpoori`s son and Rajya Sabha member Ramnath Thakur.
Taking to the social media platform, ‘X’, to thank Modi and express his happiness, Nitish said, “It is a subject of heartfelt joy that former chief minister and great socialist leader Karpoori Thakur has been conferred Bharat Ratna. It is a good decision of the Centre. It will generate positive feelings among Dalits, deprived and neglected sections of the society as late Karpoori Ji has been given the highest honour on his birth centenary.”
“I have been always demanding Bharat Ratna to Karpoori Thakur Ji for the last so many years and now our demand has been conceded. Thanks to ‘Manniya’ Shri Narendra Modi Ji," he added.
'Result of relentless struggle'
Thakur`s son and senior JD (U) leader Ramnath Thakur said, "It is ‘Tapasya Ka Phal’ (result of constant struggle) of 34 years. I had also written a letter to the PM for Bharat Ratna to his father." Ramnath, who is also a Rajya Sabha member, said that after 36 years of struggle, his father (Karpoori Thakur) had been honoured with Bharat Ratna. “Although I had not received PM`s reply to my letter, I am very happy that my father has been honoured with the highest civilian award," he added.
Ramnath told newspersons in Samastipur that the Prime Minister talked to him and his family members on telephone as Modi greeted him for conferment of Bharat Ratna on his father. He said that the Prime Minister also invited him and his family to his residence in New Delhi after the Republic Day function.
RJD chief Lalu Prasad tweets
On the other hand, RJD chief Lalu Prasad tweeted, “My political and ideological guru late Karpoori Thakur should have been given Bharat Ratna much earlier. I had raised the issue both inside and outside the House (parliament) but the Centre has awakened now when the Bihar government caring for the social cause conducted a caste-based survey and increased reservation quotas in the interest of ‘Bahujan’. Even due to fear, politics has to be done in the interest of Dalit-Bahujan.”
Meanwhile, deputy chief minister and RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav said, “I am feeling much pleasure that our decades-old demand for Bharat Ratna to former Bihar chief minister Karpoori Thakur who also championed the cause of deprived, neglected and oppressed sections of the society has been conceded. I thank the Centre for it.”
