Patna: RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav on Sunday claimed that the ruling NDA in Bihar was "on its way out", and the new government in the state led by the Mahagathbandhan will "consign to dustbin" the Waqf Act brought by the Narendra Modi dispensation at the Centre.
The young leader addressed a 'Save Waqf, Save Constitution' rally, held at the historical Gandhi Maidan here, where leaders from various political parties had turned up, wearing black bands as a mark of protest.
The former deputy chief minister, who is now the leader of the opposition in the state assembly, underscored, "Our national president Lalu Prasad has made it clear that the RJD will oppose this law tooth and nail. Our MPs opposed it in both Houses of Parliament. We have also moved the court against the legislation." "I would also ask my Muslim brethren in Bihar to remember that the NDA government is on its way out. In November, a new pro-poor government will be installed in the state and it will consign the Waqf Act to the dustbin," said Yadav, who will be leading the INDIA bloc charge in the assembly polls due later this year.
The BJP, which rules the Centre and shares power in the state, must be reminded that Independence was won by the virtue of sacrifices made by Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs and Christians alike and nobody should behave as if the country is his father's property (kisi ke baap ka desh nahin hai), he said.
Yadav also told the well-attended rally, "Be on your guard against the Election Commission's bid to help the BJP by holding a special intensive revision of the voters' list. We have to fight it out and thwart any conspiracy to deprive people of their right to vote." Senior Congress leader and former Union minister Salman Khurshid, who was among the invitees, spoke to journalists on the sidelines of the event.
"This programme is aimed at saving Waqf, democracy and the pluralistic character and culture of the country," said Khurshid, who also recalled having spent his childhood in Patna, while his grandfather late Zakir Hussain was serving as the governor of Bihar.
Other Congress leaders who had turned up at the rally included Rajya Sabha MPs Imran Pratapgarhi and Syed Nasir Hussain.
Pratapgarhi, who is also a successful poet, received a frenzied welcome from the crowds, especially youngsters, when he reached the venue in an open vehicle, with the black band wrapped around his head.
Others who spoke on the occasion included Rajesh Ranjan alias Pappu Yadav, an Independent MP with affinity towards the Congress, and Akhtarul Iman, MLA and Bihar unit chief of AIMIM, which is headed by Asaduddin Owaisi of Hyderabad.
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