Election campaigning in Bihar is heating up ahead of the first phase of polling. While Prime Minister Manmohan Singh put the Nitish Kumar government and earlier governments of the RJD in the dock for the state’s backwardness, RJD chief Lalu Prasad Yadav hit back at the Congress and held the PM equally responsible for Bihar’s plight.

If the Bihar election is witnessing a shift of the focus from social justice to governance and development, it is also seeing how friendly parties at the Centre — the RJD, LJP, the Congress — are turning into bitter rivals in the state.
Mr Lalu Yadav, who was once the chief campaigner of the Sonia Gandhi-led party outside Bihar, alleged that the Congress “cheated” us.
The Congress has launched its campaign on the theme of how the Centre’s assistance was misused, underutilised by the rulers in Bihar, how they misled people, while Mr Yadav is reminding the Congress’ its contribution to Bihar’s backwardness.
On Saturday, Dr Manmohan Singh said at the Narpatganj rally: “We have repeatedly tried to speed up the pace of progress in Bihar in providing basic needs like electricity, roads and good irrigation facilities. We started giving a special annual package of Rs 1,000 crores.”
“... Since 2004, till now, the Centre has given Rs 6,000 crores and for 36 districts the Centre is giving special assistance. These funds could have changed the face of the state... Power, roads, education could have been given to the needy but the government has not fulfilled its duties.”
He said there were instances where the Central assistance did reach the needy districts and people, but in such cases, “the state government misled people by claiming that the schemes were initiated by them.”
“It is unfortunate to know that the state government is taking credit for the schemes of the Central government and their benefits are not reaching those intended,” Dr Singh told the meeting here in this Muslim-dominated belt of Seemanchal.
Holding the past RJD governments and the current one of Mr Nitish Kumar responsible for Bihar’s plight, the PM said the Congress, led by Mrs Sonia Gandhi, could alone ensure all-round growth of the state.
The Bihar government had failed to implement the Mahatama Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MNREGA), besides the special scheme for minorities in the state, Dr Singh told an election meeting in Araria district. “The Congress is a party which thinks for the common people, weaker sections and involved in uprooting poverty, unemployment and hunger. You have seen successive governments during the past 20 years, please give the Congress a chance which alone under the leadership of Sonia Gandhi will ensure all-round growth.”
But in Patna, Mr Lalu Yadav said: “PM and the Congress are equally responsible for the state’s backwardness. Dr Singh should know that the Congress has been in power in Bihar and other states for a pretty long period. If the development has not taken place it is because of the party the PM represents,” he charged.
Turning his attention to the Congress, RJD chief said AICC leader Rahul Gandhi, while targeting the rule of Rabri Devi, seems to have forgotten that his party was a partner.
The Congress is responsible for non-development of Bihar and is making baseless allegations now to mislead the electorate,” he said.
The Congress had betrayed the RJD which had helped it in mid 2000 to assume power at the Centre by supporting the UPA-I government. “We gave Congress the crown of Delhi and we are receiving brickbats in return”, he reminded.
Claiming that the Congress had no base in Bihar and was making a futile attempt to gain a foothold, he said “We will also not in future join forces with the Congress, which has hoodwinked and cheated us and will contest elections with other like-minded secular parties.”