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Congress will register its worst performance in Bihar polls: Ravi Shankar Prasad
He called Rahul Gandhi a political tourist who comes to Bihar for tourism and to make nasty comments against the Prime Minister
Former Union minister and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Ravi Shankar Prasad has said the Bihar assembly polls are about ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA)’s good governance versus the legacy of lawlessness. In an interview with HT, he spoke about people’s faith in Janata Dal (United) or JD(U) leader and chief minister Nitish Kumar, the Opposition’s lack of credibility, and why Congress will deliver its worst performance. Edited excerpts:
What is the BJP-led NDA’s election pitch? Why will voters vote for the alliance?
There is a fight between the NDA’s good governance and the legacy of the jungle raj [lawlessness] of [former chief minister] Lalu Prasad Yadav. People have seen the dramatic changes after the NDA came to power, led by Nitish Kumar, which was accelerated because of the powerful support of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. It is evident everywhere in terms of growth, infrastructure, roads, power, more medical colleges, engineering colleges, and better law and order. In my constituency, Patna, there are signs of improved infrastructure, from Vande Bharat [trains] to the revamped Patna airport.
...a very dark legacy of the jungle raj still haunts Bihar. And the Opposition is led by people who have been named accused in the land-for-jobs and railway scams. Lalu Prasad himself has been convicted of the fodder scam. So, on the one hand, you have good governance of the NDA, and on the other, land for jobs...give land, take hotels model of the Opposition. The overpowering fear of jungle raj remains in the collective memory.
The Congress has raised the issue of vote-theft. The BJP countered it with the ghupaithias (intruder) narrative. But do these issues resonate with the masses when people seek jobs and development?
Rahul Gandhi is a political tourist who comes to Bihar for tourism and to make nasty comments against the Prime Minister. I condemn his comments that Modi is willing to dance for the sake of votes… is the level [of discourse] from a person whose great-grandfather to his father were prime ministers. People of Bihar do not take him seriously.
Are Tejashwi [Yadav] and the other [Opposition] Mahagathbandhan [grand alliance] leaders talking of SIR [Special Intensive Revision of the electoral roll]? This [issue] has no traction or relevance. Therefore, he [Gandhi] keeps on making all kinds of allegations in spite of rejection by the people. Tejashwi has maintained a conspicuous silence on the issues raised by him. As for the ghupaithias in the Seemanchal, this is a serious concern.
Political watchers say the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD)’s promise of a government job for every family could be a big challenge for the NDA and a game-changer for the Opposition.
Only 94,000 jobs were given during Lalu Prasad and Rabri Devi‘s rule over 15 years. Whatever Tejashwi claims [about having done], he should remember he was only a deputy to chief minister Nitish Kumar.
Now, 1.8 million have been given and 12.6 million Jeevika Samuhs (self-help groups) are active…We have promised more jobs in the future. People can see who will deliver and who will only make false promises. Let me ask the question of delivery. You [RJD] are promising one job to every household. The number of households is 27 million. If you’re going to generate so many government jobs, what does it mean? It means at least ₹30- ₹40,000 per month as salary, which will entail ₹12 lakh crore. Where will this money come from? When Lalu Prasad demitted office, his total budget was ₹23,000 crore. Today, it is ₹3 lakh crore. We are talking of not just jobs but also avenues for self-employment.
The Opposition claims that the ₹10,000 transferred to accounts of women under the Mukhyamantri Mahila Rozgar Yojna is a sop with an eye on elections.
We are giving ₹10,000 to women for entrepreneurship. If they show promise, they’ll be given up to ₹2 lakh. The women of Bihar see themselves empowered… apart from Nitish Kumar, the initiatives of Prime Minister Modi have empowered them to have complete trust in the ability of the NDA government to deliver.
And what are they [Opposition] doing… aren’t they promising jobs before elections? It is the job of a government to make promises and deliver.
Rahul Gandhi has said the government in Bihar is being run through remote control, and Nitish Kumar is simply the face.
The people of Bihar do not take Rahul Gandhi seriously. This will be the Congress’s worst performance in Bihar. He has not been able to grow. He believes that antics and casual comments impress people. People want gravitas and depth more, particularly in the LoP [leader of Opposition], and from the one who claims to have a pedigree of the Nehru clan.
There is a general curiosity about the BJP’s decision to go with Nitish Kumar as the chief ministerial face. He has neither health nor age on his side.
Is he travelling in the state or not? Is he campaigning or not? Day in and day out or not? Age is one factor, and you have been very unfair to him. He’s very hard-working. Look at the work he’s putting in, even at this age, and the people trust him, unlike the Opposition, which faces internal fights. They are contesting 243 seats with 255 candidates.
