'People are dying in Bihar and the ruling coalition is worried about elections' - this is the allegation of Tejashwi Yadav, Leader of Opposition in Bihar Assembly.
In an exclusive interview with Quint Hindi, the young leader of the Rashtriya Janata Dal fiercely targeted Chief Minister Nitish Kumar. Tejashwi spoke to us on the arrangements of COVID-19 in the state and preparation for elections.
After the coronavirus pandemic outbreak, the first assembly elections in the country are to be held in Bihar.
Letter of Rage
Armed with a letter by the ADG (Law and Order), Tejashwi attacked Chief Minister Nitish Kumar claiming that the letter stated that due to the large number of migrant laborers coming to Bihar, law and order can be disturbed.
“If we are not paying our respects to the migrants coming back, whom we should have got back safely and quickly, we should not insult them at least. This is the same government which, despite staying in power for 15 years, did nothing to end the unemployment and migration of workers,” he said.
Will Plight of Migrants Become Election Issue?
On 7 June, Union Home Minister Amit Shah kickstarted a virtual campaign in Bihar. Although Tejashwi's party RJD is also conducting a 'Poor Adhikar Rally' on this day, he termed the BJP’s rally as ‘power-hungry.’
“People are dying of hunger here. 8-9 crore people are unemployed financially and they are doing the virtual, digital rally. We talk about feeding the poor, but this government is hungry for power,” he said.
He also termed the RJD rally as a necessary step t be taken as the state opposition party.
‘Elections Should be Fair’
Elections are to be held in Bihar in October-November this year. This is the first assembly election to be held in the country amid the coronavirus pandemic. According to Tejashwi, the Election Commission should decide the date after taking into consideration the inputs of all parties.
“The Election Commission should call all political parties and talk about the election. We want a fair election. We will put our stand in front of the Election Commission. Our responsibility is to stand with the public,” he said.
'Nitish Kumar is a Sinking Boat'
The youth leader of RJD alleged that the constitutional institutions of the country are not independent because BJP's IT cell knows before the Election Commission when elections are due. However, he claimed that the JDU-BJP alliance is worried about the election, but not him.
"Many times the matter arises that Nitish ji can knock our door but our doors are not open for him. Who will go with them? Nitish Kumar is a sinking boat."Tejashwi Yadav
Measures to Contain COVID-19
Tejashwi Yadav also alleged that Bihar is having to fight the COVID-19 crisis with bad arrangements and law and order issues. He also raised questions about the number of ventilators, PPE kits and testing kits available for the people of Bihar.
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