Patna: RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav on Sunday slammed Union Home Minister Amit Shah for making some "baseless allegations" against party supremo Lalu Prasad, alleging that BJP leaders are trying to divert the attention of people from the core issues.
The leader of the opposition also claimed that BJP leaders from outside, during their "political tourism" to the state, would make tall claims but never reveal the amount of development funds the NDA government at the Centre provided to Gujarat vis-à-vis Bihar in 11 years.
Earlier in the day, addressing a rally in Gopalganj, a stronghold of the RJD, Shah charged Prasad and his wife Rabri Devi, both of whom had together ruled the state for 15 years, with running a "jungle raj", alleging that murders, kidnappings and dacoities became an industry in the state while they were in power.
Shah also charged the RJD supremo with nepotism, accusing him of making his wife the chief minister, getting his daughter elected to Parliament and, the BJP leader claimed, "now both his sons want to become the CM".
Responding to Shah's comments, Yadav in a post on X wrote: "Whatever the union minister said against RJD and our party supremo are baseless. BJP leaders are trying to divert the attention of people from the core issues".
At the Gopalganj rally, the Union home minister sounded the poll bugle in the state where the assembly elections are due later this year.
Yadav said, "In the election year, BJP leaders from all over the country will come to Bihar for political tourism, make false announcements, tall claims and promises. But they will not reveal how much money the Centre has given to Gujarat for development work in the past 11 years and that to Bihar?" Among other questions targeting the BJP, the RJD leader asked, "In the last 11 years, industries worth how many lakh crores of rupees were set up in Gujarat, projects were approved and what did the Centre give to Bihar in comparison to Gujarat?" He also raised issues like the state's NDA government's steps taken to stop migration from Bihar, the number of new universities established and that of the youths given jobs.
Yadav asked, "They (BJP leaders) should also say many sugar mills the NDA government started in Bihar? What was done for flood control, rescue and relief?... Why is Bihar the worst in Niti Aayog's development index and targets?" If BJP leaders, especially Shah, have the courage, they should give proper replies to these questions instead of making baseless charges, the RJD leader posted on X.
(Except for the headline, this article has not been edited by FPJ's editorial team and is auto-generated from an agency feed.)
