By Vishwapati
Patna: The election campaign in Bihar has been formally initiated by the Union Home and Cooperative Minister Amit Shah, who has leveled a satirical attack against the Lalu-Rabri regime. While addressing a cooperative conference here, Shah asked, “Lalu ji, if you have done anything for the people of Bihar, then tell us?
Amit Shah reached Patna on March 29, in the evening, and participated in a programme held at Bapu Auditorium by the Cooperative Department on Sunday. The event was also graced by Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar. Speaking to the audience, Shah said, “Modi ji is in Nagpur, and the voice of Bihar should reach Nagpur.
The people of Bihar have been failed by Lalu Prasad Yadav, the true work of the poor has been done by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Shah said. He cited several government schemes benefitting farmers, women, and the rural economy and credited Modi for opening the Ministry of Cooperation.
Dedicated To Resurrect Sugar Mills
Stressing Bihar’s potential in the cooperative sector, the Home Minister said that cooperative movements could help the state make maximum use of its fertile land. He blamed the collapse of the sector on Lalu Prasad Yadav, saying sugar mills that accounted for 30 per cent of production were reduced to six per cent under him.
Shah promised to make efforts to reopen sugar mills and announced plans to establish a Makhana Board. He also assured farmers that maize and pulses were being purchased at Minimum Support Price (MSP) and listed the chief producers of litchi, mushroom and makhana in Bihar.
‘Lalu-Rabri Defamed Bihar’: Shah
Shah also took a dig at the Lalu-Rabri government, calling their 1990-2005 guarantee period of “murder, loot, caste massacre integrated with state-sponsored corruption” He alleged that Lalu Yadav has given a bad name to Bihar in India and abroad with the fodder scam era which he described as Jungle Raj.
“Every time the state went to polls, the government formed was of the Lalu-Rabri duo but Bihar remained deprived of development, be it from funds received from the Centre when Lalu was a minister,” he said and questioned Bihar’s share from Centre funds when Lalu was a minister. Shah appealed to voters to back the NDA in the 2025 elections and said a government led by Modi and Nitish Kumar would fasttrack Bihar’s development.
Nitish Kumar Expresses Gratitude to Centre for Assistance
Speaking on the occasion, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar welcomed Amit Shah to Bihar and said that after the inception of the Ministry of Cooperation in 2021, the cooperative sector has achieved remarkable growth. He also enumerated some key initiatives taken by the central government, such as the financial package for Bihar, the Kosi-Mechi River Project, and the Patna-Ara-Sasaram Four-Lane Corridor.
Looking back to Bihar’s past, Kumar said no one “would come out of their houses after dark, communal tensions were high, and there was no education or healthcare” before 2005. He acknowledged past political miscalculations, pledging never to make them again. His comments reiterated his strong opposition to a tie-up with the RJD ahead of the coming elections.
(The author, Vishwapati, is a senior journalist based in Patna. He may be contacted at vishwapati25@gmail.com)
