Tejashwi Yadav criticises Bihar CM Samrat Choudhary over remarks on crime in state

The NDA government led by CM Choudhary has maintained that crime rates have been brought under control through stricter policing

Leader of the Opposition in Bihar assembly and Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) working president Tejashwi Prasad Yadav on Tuesday slammed Bihar chief minister Samrat Choudhary over his contradictory remarks on crimes in the state.

Choudhary made these remarks to reflect how his government tackled crimes in the state. (X/yadavtejashwi)

In a post on X, Yadav shared a video of the CM’s speech and wrote: “Bihar mein ‘crime’ ho sakta hai, ‘apradh’ nahi!” (Crimes can occur in Bihar, but not an “apradh” (offence)).

Choudhary made these remarks to reflect how his government tackled crimes in the state.

At an event to sign an agreement between the Bihar government and the Union ministry of road transport and highways (MoRTH) in New Delhi, CM Choudhary referred to crime rates in Bihar, underlining that his government was working with full zeal to strengthen law and order.

In his address, Choudhary claimed that crime had effectively been eliminated in Bihar, but appeared to contradict himself while making the point. “Crime ho sakta hai, lekin apradh nahi” (Crime can happen, but not an offence). The remark appeared to be a verbal goof-up, as ‘apradh’ in Hindi translates to crime or an offence.

The comments quickly went viral and drew strong political reactions, including from social media users.

The exchange comes against the backdrop of continuing political sparring between the ruling NDA and the RJD over law and order. Yadav has highlighted incidents, including a police firing in Madhubani in which an ASI allegedly opened fire after confrontation with locals, resulting in two deaths and leaving two others critically injured.

The NDA government led by CM Choudhary has maintained that crime rates have been brought under control through stricter policing and the use of technology, while the Opposition continues to allege that the situation remains grim and that police excesses have increased.