Fernandes cries foul over 'current tyranny' in Bihar

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar is receiving brickbats not just from the top Congress leadership in the run- up to the Lok Sabha polls but also from those in his own backyard.

Even as Congress general secretary Rahul Gandhi decided to attack Kumar on his “development plank”, rebel socialist veteran George Fernandes from Kumar’s Janata Dal (United), circulated a letter to “wellwishers”, crying foul about the “current tyranny” in Bihar.

In his first election rally in Bihar, Gandhi’s speech in Buxar — considered a backward area — pinned Nitish Kumar for being “unaware” of various social programmes of the central government.

“Apart from the National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (NREGS), in the last five years we have waived loans worth millions of rupees for the farmers. The UPA (United Progressive Alliance) also implemented the Right to Information Act and provided mid-day meals to school children. While Bihar is unaware of these programmes, they are being implemented in the rest of the country,” Gandhi said in his Buxar rally.

Meanwhile, equating Nitish Kumar government’s “tyranny” to the Congress “tyranny”, Fernandes (who was in jail during the Emergency) said: “There is a tyranny in Bihar now - the dictatorship of the party over the people, conspirators over the party and the tyranny of the new Ravanas, intoxicated with power, over the conspirators.”

Rejecting the arguments in his party over the issue of his ill-health, Fernandes said age could not be a factor in politics. “Ideology, outlook and building the people’s future are more important. But most of the leaders, younger to me, consider these aspects as futile. The ruling leader of Bihar even considers it his raajdharma (religion of the ruler) to forget the womb from which he was born!”

“I will contest the election because healthy ideology is required in this insanitary, unhealthy political situation,” he told his well-wishers.

Citing the various programmes of the UPA government, Gandhi too attacked the Bihar administration for being unable to provide employment in the state.

“I have travelled across India. In Andhra Pradesh, the government has a website in which all those who have got employment under this scheme, are listed. But in Bihar, nobody gets employment. Your people have to travel to Punjab, Haryana, Delhi and Mumbai. People from Bihar have taken Punjab and Delhi forward. But you have a government in the state which is unable to help you grow and move forward,” he said today.

Gandhi also accused the Nitish Kumar government of not providing adequate relief to Kosi flood victims. According to him, all possible help was provided by the UPA government but the Bihar government couldn’t ensure the availability of relief materials to the victims.