E-Paper
Out of jail, Shahabuddin takes potshots at Nitish
PATNA: Former Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) MP Mohammad Shahabuddin walked out of Bhagalpur prison in Bihar early on Saturday to a grand welcome from his supporters.
PATNA: Former Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) MP Mohammad Shahabuddin walked out of Bhagalpur prison in Bihar early on Saturday to a grand welcome from his supporters.
Shahabuddin, who has been in jail for over a decade, was granted bail by the Patna HC on Wednesday in connection with the murder of a man who witnessed the killing of two brothers in Siwan.
Talking to reporters after his release, Shahabuddin said “circumstances” led to Nitish Kumar becoming Bihar’s chief minister, sparking a war of words within the ruling Grand Alliance.
While the chief minister brushed aside the comment as “unimportant”, Janata Dal (United) stood by Kumar and so did ally Congress. But the Rashtriya Janata Dal — the leading constituent in the alliance of the three parties — justified the comment by the former Si wan MP.
JD(U) spokesperson Sanjay Singh rubbished the statement, saying the alliance won last year’s polls by projecting Kumar as the CM candidate. It was up to RJD supremo Lalu Prasad to “now explain under what circumstances Nitish was projected as CM”, he added.
Senior JD(U) leader Shyam Rajak said people had accepted Kumar as the CM. “He is a necessity for the state. Under him, Bihar has developed. Now the people of the entire country, too, recognise his work,” said Rajak.
The Congress too toed the JD( U) line. “Kumar is not an accidental or circumstantial leader ,” said senior leader Prem Chandra Mishra. “All the three alliance partners of GA projected and contested Bihar elections under his name. Kumar is the face of the alliance.”
But top RJD leader Raghuvansh Prasad Singh defended Shahabuddin’s comment and said the CM was “indeed made under circumstances”.
“There is no denying that Lalu Prasad is the real leader. Does Nitish have the strength (to form a government)?” asked the ex-Union minister who has attacked the CM often over several issues, including Kumar’s move to ban prohibition in the state.
The RJD, with 80 seats, is the single largest party in the alliance. The JD(U) has 71 and the Congress 27.
As the war of words among the allies broke out, Opposition National Democratic Alliance in the state lost no time in lapping up the issue. The BJP asked Kumar if Shahabuddin’s unchallenged release was the CM’s idea of the ‘rule of law’ promised by him. Shahabuddin faces more than 40 criminal cases, including those of abduction and murder.
“This is bad for the state. Will the government follow the same yardstick for others?” asked BJP spokesperson Binodanad Jha.
Senior BJP leader Nand Kishore Yadav said, “Only Lalu Pr as ad can reply to Shah a bud din’ s observation.”
Ahead of the state assembly elections in October-November, the JD(U) and the RJD joined hands despite long-term rivalry. On coming to power, both have often sparred, more so after Kumar started getting projected as a national alternative to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
The JD(U) has suggested that Kumar would be “no less capable” a PM than incumbent Prime Minister Narendra Modi, while the RJD insists Prasad is the nation’s face of an anti-BJP alliance.
