Patna (Bihar) [India], June 26 : As the political heat intensifies in Bihar ahead of the forthcoming Assembly polls, Jan Suraaj Party chief Prashant Kishor targeted Lok Sabha LoP Rahul Gandhi, questioning his commitment to Bihar and accusing him of token gestures rather than genuine political engagement.
In an interview with ANI, Kishor, who has been tirelessly walking through Bihar's hinterlands as part of his ambitious outreach, challenged Rahul Gandhi to spend even one night in a Bihar's village to prove his connection to the state's grassroots.
"Rahul ji keeps coming and going here, but doesn't really undertake any Yatra. If Rahul Gandhi has ever spent even one night in a village in Bihar, let us know. If he can spend just one night in a village, we'll accept it," he said.
"Tum Delhi mein bethkar Bihariyo ke naam par haste ho aur yaha bethkar gyan dete ho (You sit in Delhi, laugh at Biharis then come here to lecture us)" Kishor said.
He also hit out at Telangana Chief Minister Revanth Reddy for his remarks about Bihari people, demanding an apology and slamming Congress for what he described as years of neglect and disrespect toward the people of Bihar.
"In Telangana, their Chief Minister is Revanth Reddy, it's been two years since he became CM. Before that, he was in the TDP (Telugu Desam Party), and before that, he was in the RSS and the BJP. After becoming Chief Minister, he officially stated that doing labour is in the DNA of Biharis. Biharis are born to do labour work. Why did he say this? Because most of his rival KCR's officers had a Bihar background. So he was implying that Telangana is in a bad state because Biharis are running it. And to justify that, he added another statement saying it's in Biharis' DNA to do labour, and that's why KCR appointed them as bureaucrats," Prashant Kishor said.
"Aap Bihariyo ko kehte ho ki vo paida hue hai mazduri karne ke liye aur phir yaha aakar bada-bada gyan doge (You say Biharis are born to do labour work, and then come here and preach to us?" he asserted.
Further, the Jan Suraaj Chief recalled that the then Prime Minister, Rajiv Gandhi, in 1989, said he would make Bihar a development hub. "Where did that money go? Congress remained in power afterwards, so tell us, what did you do for Bihar?" he asked.
"If Congress apologised for the injustice done to Sikhs, then Rahul Gandhi should apologise to Biharis as well before campaigning in Bihar. If Biharis are only born for labour, then why are you coming here? Just go campaign in Telangana and get your votes there," Kishor said.
On being asked how many seats Congress will secure in the upcoming Bihar Assembly polls, Kishor said that it will depend upon "Lalu ji's charity."
"Congress has no real existence in Bihar. For the past 25-30 years, it's been a party that just carries Lalu ji's bag. If Rahul Gandhi truly has political strength, let him contest elections in Bihar on his own. Try demanding 40% of the seats from Lalu ji and see what happens. In Bihar, Congress dances to Lalu ji's tune. Whatever he decides, that's what happens," he said.
Bihar elections are expected to be held later this year in October or November; however, the Election Commission of India (ECI) has not yet announced the dates.
While the NDA, consisting of the BJP, JD(U), and LJP, will once again be looking to continue their stint in Bihar, the INDIA bloc, consisting of the RJD, Congress, and left parties, will be looking to unseat Nitish Kumar.
Prashant Kishore has presented his party, Jan Suraaj as another alternative in the state.
In the current Bihar Assembly of 243 members, the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) consists of 131 with the BJP having 80 MLAs, JD(U)-45, HAM(S)-4, with the support of 2 Independent candidates.
The Opposition's INDIA Bloc has a strength of 111 members with RJD leading with 77 MLAs, Congress-19, CPI(ML)-11, CPI(M)-2 and CPI-2.