As campaigning for the second phase of Bihar’s Assembly polls reached its final hours on Friday evening, the state’s political arch rivals — chief minister Nitish Kumar of the NDA and RJD chief Lalu Prasad Yadav — were engaged in a satirical slugfest from their campaign podiums.
While Mr Yadav elaborately explained to an excited crowd the pleasures of eating a meal with cheap potatoes in times of “kamartor mehaangai” (backbreaking price-rise), a visibly amused Mr Kumar warned his supporters of the folly of thinking of motorbikes in the hands of school students as was promised by Mr Yadav earlier this month.
Using his inimitable rustic phraseology and acting prowess, Mr Yadav told a large crowd at Kurhni in Muzaffarpur: “Were potatoes ever so dear when Lalu was in power? You could eat your rice and aalu chokha (mashed potatoes) like this... happily. It is the Nitish government in Bihar and the Congress government at the Centre that are responsible for the backbreaking price rise these days.” Beginning to speak only about 15 minutes before the deadline of 5 pm for the end of the campaign, Mr Yadav pooh-poohed the JD(U)-BJP government’s claims of all-round development. “They (NDA) promised electricity. But electricity comes to your homes and leaves only after flapping its wings. In villages, electricity poles stand minus the wires,” said Mr Yadav.
Mr Kumar, addressing his last public meeting for the day at Sonepur, reminded voters of the times during the RJD’s 15-year rule in Bihar. In the middle of attacking Mr Yadav and his RJD-LJP alliance for those dismal years, he subtly poked fun at Mr Yadav and sent his audience to repeatedly raise slogans in favour of the ruling NDA.
The second phase of the polls for 45 seats spread across six districts is slated for Sunday. Like the first phase, this phase would be crucial for the victory of both the RJD-LJP and the JD(U)-BJP.
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EC to Cong: Give details of MP cash
Patna/New Delhi, Oct. 22: The Election Commission has asked the Congress to “authenticate” the veracity of Rs 12.5 lakhs cash being carried by a party MP, who was intercepted by the income-tax department at Patna airport on October 13. The I-T department’s Air Intelligence Unit had intercepted and questioned R.C. Khuntia, Congress Rajya Sabha member from Orissa, just before he was scheduled to take a flight to Delhi with the cash. He was allowed to take the flight after he told the tax sleuths that he was carrying the money as part of “party fund” from Patna to New Delhi. —PTI