Nitish pays tribute to Lohia, lauds his commitment towards cleanliness

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, who today paid his tributes to Dr. Ram Manohar Lohia on his 50th death anniversary, lauded his commitment towards cleanliness.

"Today, we talk of 'swacchta', Lohia ji was the first leader to have focused on this issue...He had even said once that if Nehru ji gets the toilets constructed in the towns and villages then he would stop his protests," he told the media here.

Kumar further said that Lohia carried forward the Quit India movement in India even after independence, adding the latter never deviated from the socialist principles.

"Today is the death anniversary of Lohia ji. We have all gathered here to pay our homage to him as he carried forward the Quit India movement along with JP," Kumar said.

"He did not deviate from his principles based on the socialist ideology. He brought together the intellectuals, farmers, youth and labourers of the nation and gave them a new direction," he added.

The Chief Minister also showered praise on the socialist leader for bringing the entire opposition on board after independence.

Born on March 23, 1910, at Akbarpur in the present-day Uttar Pradesh in a prosperous Vaishya family, Lohia breathed his last on October 12, 1967.

He was an activist for the Indian independence movement and a nationalist political leader.