PM's Bihar rallies: In Samastipur, Modi says 'paani' and 'jawaani' are assets for Bihar

With less than a week to go before the people of Bihar start voting in the first phase of the state Assembly election on 12 October, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is undertaking a series of rallies in Bihar — specifically in Munger, Begusarai, Samastipur and Navada. Here is an overview of the rallies:

Munger

Proclaiming that the youth of Bihar will ‘change the state’s destiny’, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said at a rally in Munger on Thursday, that the people in the poll-bound state should vote to end ‘jungle raj’. This was the first of four rallies on Modi’s campaign schedule for the day.

Taking a dig at the government’s response to the announced special package worth Rs 1.65 crore to Bihar, Modi said, “The people want development, not false promises about special packages.” Criticising the inaction of previous governments, he questioned why the youth in the state are forced to migrate to other parts of the country.

In a rally on 2 October in Banka, Modi had also raised the issue of the special package for Bihar, saying, “Some people are raising questions on the Rs 1.65 lakh crore package announced by me. They are asking whether it will come or not. Should a single rupee be given to the present government. Will it reach you?”

Modi launched an attack on RJD chief Lalu Prasad Yadav’s remark on Hindus eating beef, saying, “Lalu Prasad Yadav has insulted the Yadav community by commenting on what they eat.” Saying that Yadavs had given India the white revolution, he said that those questioning the community are ‘insulting Bihar.’ On 4 October, in the context of the Dadri lynching incident, Lalu had said that Hindus also eat beef, and that there is no difference between beef and goat meat,   The Indian Express reported .

Criticising the lack of infrastructure in the state, Modi said, “The government had promised to deliver electricity to all in 2010. However, it could not even spend the money that was allocated for this purpose.” Modi also raised the issue of lawlessness in the state, saying that were 4,000 instances of kidnappings in Bihar between January and July this year, going by official numbers.

During the rally, Modi recalled Ram Manohar Lohia and Jaiprakash Narayan, by saying, “Jaiprakash Narayan died on 8 October 1979. The Congress had sent him to jail, after which he became ill and died.” He also said that people who talk about Lohia’s ideology are now abusing the BJP.

Begusarai

Taking his Munger message forward, Modi launched a full-frontal attack on the RJD-JD(U)-Congress combine’s grand alliance and said that the people of Bihar have already decided to bring in the BJP-led NDA alliance to form the next government.

“Bihar has decided to bring in the NDA government and move towards vikaasvad,” Modi said, while addressing a huge crowd in Begusarai.

Modi, who has been silent over the Dadri lynching case so far, slammed Lalu Prasad Yadav for his remark on the issue and said, he insulted the people of Bihar and particularly Lalu’s own community, the Yaduvanshis who had brought him to power. The prime minister has clearly identified the most relevant issues for him, as he made the same points at the Munger rally, albeit in a different order.

Dubbing the Mahagathbandhan (grand alliance) as the maha-swaarth-bandhan (grand ‘selfish’ alliance), Modi said that the alliance is like the house of Bigg Boss. “They don’t trust each other. They cannot stand each other. But they still want to form a government together. Before you vote, ask yourself — What has the maha-swaarth_-bandhan_ done for you in the past 60 years?”

Ending his speech by exhorting the crowd to chant ‘Jai Hind’, Modi told the gathered masses that the Bihar election is a fight between Jungle Raj and Vikaas Raj. “What will you chose?” he asked.

Samastipur

Modi said that the people of Bihar will teach a lesson to political parties which display arrogance. He raised the issue of lack of infrastructure and development in Bihar, asking, “Does Bihar not want good roads and good education?”

Modi also took a dig at caste politics ahead of elections in the state, saying, “Politicians who spread the venom of casteism cannot lead Bihar to progress.” He also repeated his exhortation to the people to choose between Jungle Raj and Vikaas Raj.

While speaking about the lack of infrastructure in the state, he also spoke about the need for toilets for women, saying that they have to go out at night to relieve themselves.

As during his previous two rallies, Modi said that the two most important assets for Bihar are ‘paani’ (water) and ‘jawaani’ (youth)