Lalu is 'accomplished liar', says Nitish

Bihar CM Nitish Kumar called Lalu Prasad "an accomplished liar" as he rubbished the Railway Minister's claim that the NDA Govt was not cooperating with his ministry.

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Wednesday called Lalu Prasad "an accomplished liar" as he rubbished the Railway Minister's claim that the NDA government in the state was not cooperating with his ministry.

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"RJD boss Prasad is an accomplished liar.... He has even thrown Goebbels far behind in the art of lying," Kumar said while reacting to Prasad's charge that present NDA government in Bihar was not cooperating with his ministry in acquisition of lands for several projects for the state.

The state government had always cooperated and arranged lands for railway projects, but it was unfortunate that works on all these projects were running at a snail's pace, he said.

"What happened to the proposed coach factory at Harnaut in Nalanda, the foundation stone of which was laid by the then President APJ Abdul Kalam? Why the work on the Digha-Pahleja rail-cum-road overbridge is tardy?" the chief minister asked.

On Prasad's oft-repeated comments on railways being under loss when the NDA was in power at the Centre, Kumar, who was railway minister in the Atal Bihari Vajpayee-led ministry, rubbished the allegation.

"Railway was not in red or loss during the tenure of the erstwhile NDA government," he said and asked Prasad to explain why he took budgetary support when railways had earned so much of profict. "I would also like to know from the railway minister where is this huge profit going to?" he said.

Kumar also accused Prasad of 'ignoring' the state government by not inviting him (Kumar) in Tuesday's function to mark the laying of foundation stone for the proposed rail wheel factory at Chapra, in Lalu's parliamentary constituency.

Kumar said being the railway minister, he had never gone beyond the protocol and always invited the then chief minister Rabri Devi and others from the state government to participate in such functions.